Permutations
by uplink2
Summary: Have you ever wondered about the power of the human voice? Can just the sound you hear leave you with a sense of warmth and longing? Can you fall for someone just by listening to them speak without ever having seen them? What about when they hear you?
1. Flaminco Sketches

**A/N So new story here. This is something that I've had bits and pieces floating in my head for a while now. It kind of comes as an offshoot of my Final Scene story where Chuck was a radio DJ back at Stanford. It is A/U and doesn't really have anything to do with that story other than it being sort of the genesis of the concept. I had a bit of a moment last night where in dealing with a lot of my feelings of melancholy about the final moments of the show a flash of inspiration came and this is the result. Though I do see the beauty in the finale and am amazed by the incredible performances, the sadness I had anticipated about the end of something that had been such a big part of my life is also accompanied by a feeling of melancholy that I really never saw coming. Especially when Fedak told us we were getting a "love letter to the fans." I don't know what kind of love letters he has received in his life but this wasn't what I would call one. I love deep meaningful stories with lots of subtext but I didn't want one here. Thirty seconds more and a few choice words and the show would have ended with a fans ending, not the writers ending we got. It will be a long time I think before I can really start a rewatch without a feeling that in the end none of what I am watching ultimately matters as it may or may not be gone forever to the most important character in the show for me, Sarah Bartowski.**

**For those wondering the next chapter of Life, Love and Lies should be up next week. I'm not sure how often I will update this one as I want to get back to that as we are in the meat of the story now but this is a fun place to come to whenever I need the inspiration.**

**You know the drill. I don't own Chuck because if I did the last words spoken on the show would have been "I love you Chuck, with all my heart."**

**Permutations **

**Chapter 1**

**Mar. 23, 2003**

**9:45 PM**

**KZSU Studio 3**

"Morgan, can you get me Oliver Nelson's Stolen Moments? I want to start the show tonight with it. I think it's going to be one of _'those nights'_ tonight."

"No problem Chuck. I'll grab the usual, McCoy Tyner, Sun Ra, Oregon and Eric Dolphy"

"Thanks Buddy, you always seem to know what I'm feeling."

"Well we are hetero life partners after all."

"That we are my friend, that we are."

Chuck Bartowski, a tall, lanky brunette young man, a self professed nerd, was a senior in Electrical and Computer engineering at Stanford University. His acceptance to the prestigious school had been the highlight of his young life. A life that had seen many highs but far too many lows for someone so positive and kind. Through it all his demeanor never changed. He always put his friends and family first and his natural expression always seemed to be that of an infectious smile that lit up a room for anyone lucky enough to see it. Unfortunately some took his kindness and selflessness as a weakness. They either took advantage of it or they dismissed him as just another nerd in a school full of them. Those like his sister Ellie, a first year intern at Westside Hospital back in Burbank and his constant partner in crime, Morgan, knew how special he was and tried to never let him forget it even when life's little or not so little bumps got him down.

Chuck and Morgan began their weekly ritual of picking material for Chuck's Sunday night Jazz show on KZSU, the student run radio station of Stanford University. Chuck was involved in a lot of campus activities but these 4 hours from 10pm to 2am each sunday night were his therapy, his escape from all of the stress of maintaining a 3.8 GPA at one of the nations most difficult and expensive Universities. He had to maintain a 3.5 to keep his full scholarship as he had no other source of financial support other than himself or what his sister could spare after her expenses.

All the stress of his day to day life seemed to slip away when Chuck sat down in front of that microphone each week. For those 4 hours he was in his own world. What made it so great for him is he also got to spend those hours with his best friend from childhood, Morgan Grimes.

Chuck and Morgan had been best buddies since the days of elementary school. Chuck had been the one that pulled Morgan out of his locker after that dick head Cole Barker and the rest of his future wife beater friends had stuffed him in amongst his pics of Jeri Ryan, Sarah Michelle Geller, along with half eaten bags of Doritos and rank gym socks.

But Morgan had been there for Chuck too. The day his mom disappeared, Morgan had stayed over in Chuck's room and they stayed up all night watching a Back To The Future marathon on his VCR. For some reason Morgan had a particular liking for the DeLorean used in the film and had told Chuck that if he ever got rich that was the car he wanted to own. He had even already picked out the vanity plate he was going to register the car with. Even though Chuck knew it was lame, he also knew that DeMorgan was perfect for his little buddy and he really hoped one day he got a chance to ride in it. The thought of speeding down the I-5 doing about 80 mph in a stainless steel batwing car with his friends special plates bolted on the front and rear just seemed like heaven on earth. Well at least it was to Morgan and that was good enough for Chuck.

"Hey buddy you can put back A Love Supreme as I don't think we are going that deep tonight."

"Ok Chuck, I just thought after the way Jill dumped you, you might be looking to play a little bit of After The Rain to kind of get your head straight."

"Thanks buddy, but you know, I've decided I'm ok with it. If she really thinks that Bryce is better than me, so be it. I never did anything to her that warrants being treated that way by her and so I'm done worrying about it. She'll learn like every other one of Bryce's conquests that as soon as he's gotten what he wants from her, his eyes will be on to his next target. Believe me I know. I spent more nights on the fraternity couch after going to our room and finding a tie on the doorknob than I care to remember. Women have spent more nights as Bryce's roommate than I have and I lived with him since we pledged sophomore year."

"Yea, it's almost like he's freaking James Bond the number of women he has had. A couple of smiles and a few well rehearsed lines and they are practically begging to have his children. I just wish we got some of his leftovers. Even his rejects are 8's."

"I know buddy but that's not me and its not you either. One day we are going to find girls that are going to not be impressed by the good looks, the charm, and the killer smile of jerks like Bryce Larkin. They are going to look for something more and buddy that's when they are going to see you and me. Guys like Bryce may be on top, in more ways than one, right now but a few years from now, we nerds are going to be their bosses."

"Damn straight" Morgan reached over and he and Chuck slapped a nerd high five.

After a few moments of quiet thouth Morgan was the first to speak. "Say Chuck, do you actually believe that shit you were just spewing?"

Chuck laughed at the absurdity of it all. He knew the reality he lived in. "Well I was just channeling my inner Ellie. I was talking to her last week after I walked in on Jill and Bryce going at it in my freaking bed. Not only did that asshole break the bro code but he banged my girlfriend in my own freaking bed and forgot to put the god damn tie on the door for one."

"Maybe, do you think he did it on purpose?"

"I hope not Morgan. That's cold even for a douchebag like Bryce. I'm just glad we are graduating soon and I won't have to put up with his crap much longer. Thanks for letting me move in with you. I know its cramped but I'm done with being Bryce's friend and roommate but I can't afford anything else right now."

"I understand Hans and it's no problem. You would have done the same for me."

"Amen to that, Chewy."

"By the way, what's up with you and Anna?"

"Nothing. She's heading back to Hawaii after graduation and that's it. I guess it's never gonna happen for me and my asian princess."

"Too bad man. I know how much you liked her rather bizarre wardrobe among other things."

"I know, no one rocks the Catholic School girl uniform quite like Anna."

Chuck and Morgan both kind of looked of into space. Catholic school girls with white shirts, short plaid skirts and long jackets were a mutual fantasy they had shared since puberty.

Chuck turned and noticed the clock on the wall. The NPR radio show would be ending soon and it was time to get into the studio and get some music cued up.

"What are you starting with tonight Chuck?"

"Well after the Oliver Nelson song I think I'll move on to Song for my Father by Horace Silver. I heard Ricky Don't Lose Your Number on that classic rock station today walking to my EE 416 class and it made me think of it. Steely Dan always stole from the greats."

"Ok Chuck, you're on in 10 seconds. 5,..4.. 3.. 2.. " Morgan pointed to Chuck as he faded out the Prairie Home Companion and opened the mike for his best friend.

"This is KSZU-FM Palo Alto California. The student run radio station of Stanford University. My name is Chuck Bartowski and along with my partner Morgan Grimes its time for sunday night jazz. So sit back, put down your laptops, put away those Motorola Razor phones and for the next four hours listen to the best in the only true American music, jazz and R&B.

"Also if you would like to call in a request please do so. We would love to hear from you. The request line is 650 723-9010. Remember listeners, we actually play the requests you make unlike those top 40 stations that only play what they are told to play. Just try and request a song that's not on their playlist, you are never gonna hear it. That's not going to happen at KSZU. You request it and if we have it, we re going to play it.

"First up is a request of mine. Here's Oliver Nelson and Stolen Moments."

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

**Stanford University**

**"**Carina have you seen my beige cammie?"

"I think it's in the bathroom behind your hamper, Sarah."

"Thanks. I'm doing some delicates, do you need anything washed?"

"No I'm good but thanks anyway."

"No problem."

Carina Miller walked in to the small living room she shared with her best friend and roommate, Sarah Walker. The small two bedroom dorm/apartment they had for their senior year was a bit drab but they had managed to add a certain style to their surroundings. Carina and Sarah had roomed together since freshman year and had grown to become best friends. Sarah had a bit of a protective streak in her and that is exactly the thing her roommate needed from her closest ally. Carina had a habit of making really bad decisions with the men in her life. She either lusted after the pretty boy jerks who would screw her and be gone long before the sun came up or she turned her nose up at the 2 or 3 decent guys she met simply because they were nerds or didn't have the rather superficial image of someone she wanted on her arm. Image meant a lot to Carina and her sex life was all part of that image. She figured if the men were interested in her only for sex then it was much less likely she would get hurt by them. So she accepted how they treated her because it was better than getting your heart broken into a million pieces. Each party knew what they were getting into and the fewer strings attached the better as far as Carina was concerned. Besides at Stanford there was an abundance of hot guys and she would never run out of possible bed warmers.

Carina looked like a Swedish model, well except she was a redhead and not blonde, and with her looks and 'reputation' her dance card very rarely had any openings for the foreseeable future.

Sarah Walker on the other hand was different. Sure she was just as beautiful if not more so than Carina. She was blonde, tall, athletic and had incredibly deep blue eyes that seemed to go on forever. But her social life was never as active as her roommate's. She had dated during her four years at Stanford but it was never really a priority. She had had a brief but disastrous relationship that lasted all of three weeks freshman year with a real dirtbag, Bryce Larkin. That ended when she walked in on him in the shower with a leggy brunette when she stopped by his dorm one sunday morning. He had told her he couldn't go out that night because he didn't feel well after drinking all day while tailgating at the UCLA game. Sarah had felt bad for him and went over sunday morning to surprise him with some aspirin, vitamin B-12 and chicken soup. As she was heading up to his room on the second floor she heard his voice and the voice of an obviously giggling female coming from the bathroom at the end of the hall. She quickly opened the door and found the two naked lovers in the shower. The female was leaning against the tile wall of the shower while Sarah's supposed boyfriend was caressing her breasts as he made love to her.

Sarah simply walked over, threw back the shower curtain and poured the hot chicken soup over where the couple was joined together. After a few screams from them both Sarah simply turned and walked away vowing never to be caught by the seduction of another pretty boy who knew how to spin a few lines together as he was unbuttoning your blouse.

Sarah's childhood had certainly not been a traditional one. The daughter of a con man she had miraculously gotten into one of the most prestigious colleges in the country simply because she had earned it. She had always been a good student when she was in one place long enough to establish herself at school. Fortunately her dad was working a long con in San Diego for two years when Sarah was in high school. She managed to get straight A's and scored 1560 on her SAT's. Her guidance councilor was a Stanford alum and because he knew she had moved around alot and had no contact with her mom it seemed he decided to make a few calls and was able to get Sarah a scholarship. The timing was perfect as just before she was about to graduate high school Jack, her dad, was arrested on extortion charges. Her councilor found her a summer job so she could eat and let her stay in the room above his garage until she went off to Palo Alto in the fall.

During her years at college Sarah had excelled in all of her classes, in particular foreign languages. By her first semester of her junior year she spoke French, Spanish, Italian and of all things Polish. She said her great grandfather had emigrated from Poland when he was 15. It seemed that the entire family pitched in and were only able to send one child to America back during the great immigration of the early twentieth century.

With only two months to go till graduation Sarah had completed most of her work for her classes already and was simply working on her final thesis for one and waiting her final exams in the others. She wanted to go into International relations and possibly work for the State Department in DC after completing her studies. She was going to graduate Magna cum Laude with a degree in International Studies and a minor in foreign languages. She was beautiful, bright, focused and incredibly lonely.

"Carina do you mind if I put on the radio while I read and do laundry?"

"That's fine Sarah I'm meeting a few folks down at Benny's bar, are you sure you don't want to come?"

"Nah, I'm good here."

"You know Sarah you are never going to meet that guy I know you dream about just sitting here in the apartment every night. He isn't going to just come into your room and carry you off to some beautiful beach where he tells you his life story and promises to be there for you, always."

"I know. But its sunday night and I have an 8 o'clock class tomorrow morning." Sarah looked at her friend and roommate and gave her a small smile that showed both a certain sadness but also an appreciation for the fact that Carina really did care about her.

"Well have fun organizing you underwear drawer." Carina gave Sarah a loving smirk and Sarah stuck her tongue out at her best friend.

After Carina left Sarah proceeded to gather her laundry and went downstairs to the communal laundry room and placed two loads in. She set her watch to go off in 45 minutes so she would remember to put what was ok to go into the dryer and then bring up her delicates to hang in her room.

After she returned to her dorm/apartment she walked over and turned on the small boombox that her father had given her when she was 14 for Christmas. It had been a particularly good year for him with the annual Salvation Army holiday con. Donations were good as the economy was booming during the Clinton years. It was one of the few things her father had ever given her and it meant a great deal.

She immediately was stunned by the loud hiphop station that Carina liked to listen to. She grabbed the tuning knob and spun the dial down toward the bottom of the FM band where she knew she would likely find the less popular music her father had taught her about during their rides between cities. Jack Burton as he was called then loved Jazz. He had been a trumpet player as a child and had even worked with the travelling Count Basie orchestra that was touring the midwest after the Count had died. Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, and Clifford Brown were all played during many a long journey from her dad's cassettes.

As Sarah spun the dial she came upon 90.1 FM. She knew this was the student run radio station and was always a good place to hear music you wouldn't hear on commercial radio. Just as she found it a warm deep soothing voice came through the speakers. Something about the voice she heard captivated her. Hearing him somehow made her smile and her heart seemed to skip a beat at the sound.

"_This is KSZU-FM Palo Alto California. The student run radio station of Stanford University. My name is Chuck Bartowski and along with my partner Morgan Grimes its time for sunday night jazz."_

Jazz she thought would be perfect while she worked. At least that is what she told herself. But surprisingly a part of her just wanted to hear that voice some more. It was just so soothing and she could only imagine the man it belonged to. Was he tall, short, brunette, blonde, straight, curly? Blue or brown eyes? Sarah all of a sudden shook herself out of her daydream. _'It's just a voice on the radio. Everyone on the radio has a soothing voice. That's how they get the job_.' She chastised herself for thinking the thoughts of a school girl daydreaming about a boy she never met and could only imagine.

"Sarah, it's just a voice for Pete's sake." Sarah all of a sudden realized she had spoken that out loud and had no idea where her mind had drifted to. She turned her attention back to her laundry and she began to fold the things she had done earlier and put them away. _'You have class tomorrow morning, time to stop the wasted thoughts and get done what needs to be done'_ she thought.

After she had put away all of her clean laundry, the sweet piano melody of Song for My Father faded and Sarah's attention was again turned back to the radio. Would he speak? Would she hear those same warm sounds enter her lonely room? Would she feel the same small something she felt in her stomach when she first heard that adorable voice_? 'Adorable? Where the hell did adorable come from?'_

_"That was the great Horace Silver with Song for My Father. I hope if you caught the basic melody line from Steely Dan you now know where it came from first. At least great artists like Donald Fagan acknowledge where they get their inspiration unlike those that try to hide behind changing one notelike that ridiculous Vanilla Ice clown."_

Sarah lay down on her bed and smiled at just how confident, funny and endearing this Chuck Bartowski's voice was. For some reason it felt like lying in her bed listening to his beautiful voice he was there holding her somehow. It was the strangest feeling she had ever felt. A voice on the radio made her feel like she was being hugged and she couldn't help but smile and snuggle right into it. Somehow it made the loneliness she felt deep inside her lessen just a little bit.

_"Remember folks the request line rings right here in the studio here at KSZU. It's not in some promotions or sales office somewhere. So if you want to hear something give me a call _at _650 723-9010 and I'll have my oh so cool partner Cobra search our over 20 thousand albums for it. Next up is long one and one of my favorites. Sahara by McCoy Tyner."_

Sarah sat up on the bed now a bit saddened by the fact the music was back on_. "Sarah you are supposed to listen to the radio for the music, not the announcers voice. If you want to hear his voice so much give him a call. You know some jazz music so you won't be a complete fool when you call in"_

Sarah thought about it. She had never called a request line in her life before. She really wasn't someone who liked popular music that much and that was the only place she had ever heard you could request. I mean what could possibly be a down side? He wouldn't know who was calling, she could just say hi, make her request and see if this guy was real. See if his voice sounded differently over the radio because they added some fancy electronic way of enhancing the warmth and caring in just a regular guys voice.

Hell maybe it was all just technology and he wasn't even a real person? So if he wasn't real then why was she so apprehensive and amazingly nervous about making the call? If he was real he was probably just some really dorky band geek with a great voice. 5'4" glasses, and a face that still suffered from late teenage acne. He probably had a closet of black t-shirts or worse yet wore a pocket protector on a white button down shirt.

Then again he could be tall, handsome, with curls she could run her fingers through. _'Wait what?.. where is this coming from? Maybe Carina's right I do need to get out more. Well the only way I'm going to figure this out is to pick up the phone and call the number. I bet he won't even answer. Maybe it will be his partner what did he call him? Martin? Morgan? oh yea Cobra. Cobra? Damn his parents must be sadists.'_

Sarah took a deep breath, got up and reached for her cell phone that was sitting on charge on her desk. She flipped the phone open and looked at the numbers. Steadying her hand she entered the first 7 numbers and then immediately closed the phone_. 'What the hell are you doing Sarah? You don't call a guy because he's got a nice voice? I'm just making a request for some Miles Davis. It will help me get my work done, that's all. Yea right keep telling yourself that. Ok fine I just want to know if this guy's voice is real or not ok? Is that so bad?'_

Sarah opened up her phone again and dialed the number. On the third ring just as she was about to hang up a voice on the other end of the line answered.

_"Hello, this is Chuck at KSZU-FM thanks for calling would you like to make a request?"_

It was him and his voice sounded exactly the same. Warm, friendly, safe. After a few more seconds of silence the voice said again _"Hello? Is anybody there?"_

Sarah took a deep breath and swallowed. She hoped her mouth wasn't so dry that her voice cracked. She then spoke a little softer than she wanted. "Yes, I'm here."

_"Great. Would you like to hear something in particular?"_

"Yes, I'd like to make a request if I could please."

Sarah's heart was beating a mile a minute and she had no idea why. She needed to pick the right song top ask for. Why hadn't she thought of the one she wanted? Was he going to think she was an idiot for calling and not having a song picked out?

"Yes, I'd like to hear Flamenco Sketches by Miles Davis please."

_"Wo,w one of my all time favorites. Great great choice. I'd love to play that for you..."_

"Sarah, my name is Sarah."

_"I'd love to play that song for you Sarah."_

"Thank you, Chuck is it?"

_"Yea, it's Chuck. I know no one names their kids Chuck anymore."_

"I like it. It suits you."

_"It does? Sarah is a beautiful name and I bet it suits you too."_

"You have a great voice, Chuck. You sound very sweet on the radio."

_"Sweet? Thanks for making me feel like I'm 8."_

They both chuckled. After a few seconds of silence Sarah added. "You're funny Chuck. I like that."

Chuck gulped for a second and then realized that the song he was playing was ending shortly. _"Hey Sarah I have to go. Thank you so much for the request. I'll play it right after the next song I promise. Call again anytime."_

"Thank you Chuck. I will. Nice talking to you."

_"Nice talking to you too, Sarah. Goodbye."_

"Goodbye Chuck**."**

Sarah then hung up the phone and lay back down on her bed. She felt a smile come across her face. The nicest smile she had felt in a while. She definitely planned to call back again next week.

**A/N2** **Next up a bit of Chuck's POV and reaction to the phone call. How did Sarah's voice affect him? Will she call him next week? If she does where does it go from here?**


	2. Aurora

**A/N Thanks to all for the alerts, reviews and those who read the first chapter of this story. I was humbled by the response to this therapy session of mine. Again this story is AU and just explores a different way of meeting for our favorite couple. Can Chuck and Sarah begin to fall in love with each other just from the sound of each other's voice? Well if you know me then you know the answer to that question.**

**I didn't expect to get this chapter up so soon after posting the latest from Chuck VS Life, Love and Lies but when I sat down to write it, it wouldn't let me stop till it was finished. So here is chapter 2 of Permutations.**

**This hasn't been looked over so all mistakes are mine. I still don't own Chuck.  
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**Chapter 2**

**Aurora**

**Mar. 23, 2003**

**10:58 PM**

**KZSU Studio 3**

Chuck hung up the phone and couldn't stop the smile that taken over his face. His mind drifted for a second as he recalled the phone call he had just received. Sure it was just a simple song request, a request for one of his favorite songs by one of his favorite artists, but still it was just a simple request, nothing more. But if that were the case how did he explain the sudden rush of, well, contentment that he was now feeling? Like he had found something he didn't even know he was missing.

"Ten seconds Chuck."

"Thanks buddy."

"5, 4, 3, 2..."

Chuck reached over and pulled the EV RE20 mike over to his mouth and hit the booth mike select switch on the console in front of him. He faded out the turntable and opened his mike.

"This is KSZU-FM Palo Alto, California. We are the student run radio station of Stanford University. I'm Chuck Bartowski and this is Sunday Night Jazz. That was Sahara by the legendary McCoy Tyner. Coming up after the news break at the top of the hour we will be hearing Ifrane from Randy Weston's Blue Moses LP. featuring Freddie Hubbard on trumpet and Grover Washinton Jr. on sax. We will follow that with some classic Miles Davis by request. But first I'll throw it over to my partner Morgan Grimes in studio 2 with a look at the stories making news on campus. Morgan?"

"Thanks Chuck. At tonight's student council meeting..."

Chuck got up from his chair and headed out into the library. He needed to get the copy of Kind of Blue to fulfill the request that Sarah had made. As he thought about that idea he stopped in his tracks for just a second. He realized it wasn't the request that made him happy, although he was always grateful when listeners called in to request or just chat about the music he played. It was the person who requested it. Well maybe not the person as he had no idea who she was other than she said her name was Sarah. But it was her voice that made him smile. There was something about it, something different, something he connected with. Like he could spend hours listening to it.

He shook his head for a second to clear his daydreaming and continued his search for the Miles Davis CD. He grabbed it and a number of other CD's and LP's to pick through for the remaining three hours off the shelf and headed back into the studio. He quickly sat down in his seat as he heard Morgan begin to finish up his five minute newscast. He tried to put the thoughts about Sarah or at least Sarah's voice out of his mind and focus on the rest of his show.

"... and that's what's happening on campus this week. Now back to Chuck Bartowski and more great jazz."

Chuck hit play on turntable and opening of Ifrane began. Chuck still loved playing LP's. There was something about playing records that made him feel like a real disk jockey. CD's were great for sound quality and the new Digicarts that the station had installed last year were a great replacement for the old analog tape carts he used to have to use for PSA's etc. But placing the tone arm on an LP and cueing up first audio was just so old school and he could imagine so many of the greats in radio doing it over the years. Plus a great deal of the jazz he loved had not been issued on CD or were part of a collection instead of the original full recording. But classics like Kind of Blue certainly were and the audio quality and lack of noise in the quiet passages was fantastic on the CD versions. But still Chuck liked going old school whenever he could. He dreaded the new servers he heard the administration was planning to install next year so much of the shows could become automated. He was glad he was graduating before that happened.

Chuck took the Kind of Blue CD out of the case and placed it into the player. Cueing up Flaminco Sketches made his mind drift back to Sarah's voice. He realized that he would probably never hear it again as he had no way of knowing who or where she was unless she called in which seemed unlikely. That thought saddened him just a bit. But just as his mind was wandering again Morgan walked back into the studio.

"Hey Chuck what's up?" Morgan saw his best friend deep in thought.

"Oh hey Morgan. ahhh nothing. Great report tonight, buddy."

"Thanks, but that wasn't what I was asking."

"It's nothing Morgan. Just tired a bit and we need to focus as we got three more hours to program." Chuck then turned back to the collection of CD's and LP's he had brought in and tried to figure out what song to play after Sarah's request. _'Sarah's request'. _Without him even being aware of it, he smiled.

"Chuck what the heck is going on in that great big brain of yours? I haven't seen you smile like that since before you caught 'the bitch and the douchebag' all hot and heavy in your rack. As a matter of fact you haven't smiled like that since the last time you saw Ellie."

"Ahh. well... I guess I'm just coming to terms with it all and am ready to move on with my life Morgan."

"Well it's about freaking time. We got some serious gaming nights to catch up on. You wasted way too much time with her and not with me."

"Ok tomorrow night, you, me and Halo."

"Great, I'll bring the grape soda and you get the pizza!"

"Deal."

**Mar 26, 2003 **

**Union Square**

**Tresidders Student Union**

**1:13pm PM**

Sarah sat at one of the outdoor tables reading her notes from last week's International Diplomacy class while she waited for Carina to join her for lunch. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and it was a bit warm for this time of year in the low to mid seventies. A couple of students were throwing a Frisbee on the lawn and a few guys were playing hacky sack on the other side of the small park across from the Student Union. Sarah and her roommate had made it a regular thing that at least one day a week they would grab lunch together on campus. With their busy class schedules and Carina's busy social calendar they missed spending as much time together as they did the first few semesters freshman and sophomore years. So the weekly lunches at Union Square were something they looked forward to a great deal. Sarah didn't mind that Carina dated a lot or had a very busy social life and she didn't. It was who Carina was and she loved her roommate. It's just that her lifestyle wasn't for Sarah and she was okay with that.

Sure Sarah was lonely, terribly lonely at times, but she found things to do by herself that she enjoyed and kept her busy. She liked going to the gym and working out on the heavy bag. She enjoyed running and had even tried doing Thai Chi with a group on campus. Sarah was beautiful and she did have many a jock try to pick her up or outdo her at the gym to show off their manly prowess. Somehow they believed that she was just supposed to fall all over them afterwards. But she simply brushed them off politely, moved on to the next exercise and if they still couldn't take the hint she would challenge them to a little sparring in the ring or on the mat. That was usually enough especially after she dropped a couple of jerks from the lacrosse team on their asses in less than thirty seconds when they foolishly took up her challenge.

But interestingly enough the last few days Sarah had been in a better mood than she had in, well, she couldn't remember when. She wasn't exactly sure why. She did have an idea but didn't want to admit it to herself as it seemed ridiculous to her, but for some reason she was well..., happy. Somehow the loneliness she had grown accustomed to ever since the disaster with Bryce ended didn't feel so omnipresent anymore. Maybe she was finally ready to move on with her life, happy with whom she was and ready to face life's new challenges.

When she asked herself the reason why she felt this way the past few days her first thought, okay her only thought, was somehow hearing that voice on the radio, Chuck's voice, and then talking to him ever so briefly on the phone had seemed to soothe her and somehow make her feel good. Yea, that was it. His voice made her feel good.

_'What the hell are you thinking Walker?' _ The voice inside her head asked. _'How can a guy's voice you heard one night on the radio and spoke for all of 3 minutes to on the phone make you feel good?' _ She knew in her head it was nuts but for some reason her heart couldn't deny it. Chuck Bartowski's voice made her feel good. She smiled unconsciously at the thought.

"Earth to Sarah? Come in Sarah"

Sarah's wandering attention was broken as she noticed her roommate was sitting across form her now waving her hand in front of her face. "Oh hey Carina. Sorry I just spaced out for a second."

"Well wherever your mind took you would you please let me know where it was as I haven't seen you look that happy in ages. As a matter of fact you seem to have been in a good mood for the last couple of days now. Spill it Sarah. What's going on in that pretty little blonde head of yours? Or should I say who?"

"What? it's nothing Carina. I ahh I guess I'm just happy spring's here, graduation, getting a job, and moving on with my life. I've got things to look forward to, that's all."

"Sorry roomie, not buying it. None of those things have changed in the last 72 hours, but you have. You're smiling, you're daydreaming which you never do, and you just seem like you feel good about something and in my experience the only thing that can cause those kinds of changes in a girl your age is a guy. So who is he and where did you meet

him?"

Sarah turned her head and looked across the park at the shrubs that were just starting to bud with their spring colors. If she told Carina what she thought might be going on it would seem ridiculous to her. Hell it seemed ridiculous to Sarah when she tried to think about it objectively but the problem was being objective was impossible. It was completely subjective to her and unless Carina could get the same subjective point of view it was better to simply deny everything_. 'It is ridiculous, isn't it_?" She thought that more to convince herself than Carina and she knew it.

"No Carina, I haven't met anyone."_Well that part is technically true at least._" So you can put your worries about my love life, or lack thereof, on hold for a little while. I'm just in a good mood is all. Besides it's a beautiful day today, best one this spring and I'm having lunch with my best friend. What's there not to be happy about?"

"Ok fine Sarah. I'll let it go this time but something has changed in you in the last few days and whatever it is I'm glad." Carina lowered her voice just a little, reached out and took Sarah's hands in hers. "Sarah you're my best friend and I worry about you sometimes. I know you're lonely even though you try to hide it and you have been afraid to give any guy a chance ever since you walked in on that asshole Larkin. But not every guy is like him. Well, many are but not all. Somewhere out there is a guy who will see the amazing woman inside you that I've gotten to know these last four years. He will fall in love with her and not just lust after the beautiful package she comes wrapped in."

Sarah squeezed Carina's hands just a bit and felt her eyes moisten just a little. Sure they were different in so many ways but their bond was strong and had been for a long time.

"Thanks Carina, I appreciate that but I'm fine, really. Now let's get some lunch. I've got class in an hour on the other side of campus."

"Ok but it's my treat this week. You got it last time."

"So I guess I can actually get food this time?"

"Funny. A girl forgets her wallet one time and suddenly she's a moocher. Where's the love Sarah?"

Sarah laughed and punched her best friend on the arm. Maybe this thing with Chuck was ridiculous but one thing was certain. Carina was a great friend and always would be.

"Oh Sarah, I almost forgot. A couple of the girls from my economics class are heading up to San Francisco for the day on sunday. There's a free concert at Golden Gate Park with some local bands we thought we'd check out. Do you want to come with us?"

"Ahhh this sunday?"

"Yea, please come Sarah. I really would like you to be there. Thankfully that bitch Jill isn't coming. I can't stand her. She just screwed some hot guy in her boyfriend's, well now ex-boyfriend's bed and acts like she's proud of it. I never met him but Tracy, her roommate said he was a great guy and she just broke his heart to go after some pretty boy."

"That sucks, glad I've never met her. What time is the concert and when would we be back?"

"Concert's from 2 to 6pm, we thought we'd get a quick bite and should be back by 8 or 9 hopefully."

Sarah thought about it. She did need to try and enjoy her last few months in college before the real world came crashing in. She just didn't want to be getting home too late. She had that 8 am class monday morning_. 'Sure Sarah, tell yourself that is the reason you want to be back by 10 on sunday. Someone else might actually believe it._'

"Okay sounds like fun. I'll go but I've got an 8 am class on monday so I need to be back early and if you girls improvise like last time I went to San Francisco with you, I'm taking the bus back home by myself this time."

"Hey those guys were cute. Okay stupid, but cute. We'll have a blast I promise and I'll get you home in time for you to get your beauty sleep. Not that you need it." Carina reached over and gave her roommate a warm affectionate hug.

**Mar. 31, 2003**

**1:18 AM**

**KZSU Studio 3**

Chuck reached over and looked at the last few songs he planned to play on tonight's show and sighed. He hated to admit it but a part of him was disappointed. Not in the show per se but in the fact that a certain listener hadn't called in to make another request this week. It was getting late and the likelihood that Sarah would call was getting slimmer by the minute. _'See Chuck it was just someone making a request and nothing more than that. There was no connection like your nerdy romantic self had thought' _Chuck couldn't deny the truth in his thoughts even though it didn't make him feel any better. _'Let's just finish up the show with some Mingus and Monk.'_

The look of melancholy on Chuck's face did not go unnoticed by Morgan. Chuck had seemed extra excited for tonight's show all week. Even more so than usual. But as the night went on something seemed to be bothering him more and more. His mood changed and now it was almost like he was sad for some reason.

"Chuck, buddy, something's bothering you my friend. Care to explain to old Dr. Morgan, your hetero life partner, what the hell is up with you tonight?"

Chuck once again was pulled from his thoughts by his best and most trusted friend, someone who had been there for every major event both good and bad in his life. Morgan knew him better than anyone except maybe for Ellie and he could read his moods pretty damn well. "It's nothing Morgan. Just a little down tonight is all. It happens."

"Yea it does to most people but when it's Chuck Bartowski that's feeling down it's my job to figure out why and help him back up again. Melancholy Chuck is not one of your best looks man. Is this about Jill again?"

Chuck got a small look of shock on his face. "God no. It has absolutely nothing to do with my cheating ex-girlfriend."

"Then what the hell is it man?"

Chuck knew Morgan wasn't going to let up until he gave in and it might do him some good to finally talk about it instead of his mind thinking of a million different reasons why Sarah hadn't called. "Ok fine but this is going to sound absolutely ridiculous and I'm going to feel like a complete idiot once I've said it out loud. So you have to promise me you won't laugh especially since it's your fault I'm saying it. You asked for it man."

"Jedi promise, no laughing."

Chuck shifted in his chair and he looked down at the turntable and knew he had about another 8 minutes of Pharoah Sanders' Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. "Well I know this will sound stupid but I was hoping to get a request tonight."

"Hey Chuck my friend, hate to break it to you but we got like five requests. Remember the stuff we played at 11?" Morgan had noticed that Chuck was very anxious whenever the request line rang. Why would he have forgotten they had gotten them?

"Yea, I know buddy but it wasn't just getting a request it was who I hoped the request was from."

"So, you're down because a particular person didn't make a request tonight?"

"See I told you it was stupid." Chuck felt the embarrassment come across my face.

"Wait, now I get it. You were hoping that girl that called last week would call again, weren't you?"

"Yea, Sarah." Chuck's shoulders slumped.

"Wow, she must have made one hell of a request if you remember her name and when she doesn't call in the next week you turn all mopey on me."

"No, it wasn't the request though it was a good one, it was her voice. There was just something about it. We only talked for a few minutes but it was like I was talking to someone I'd been waiting my whole life to talk to."

"Wow, all that from a three minute phone call?"

"Yea, ridiculous isn't it. And the fact that she didn't call back tonight says that whatever I was thinking or feeling was just an illusion and only in my head. There was no connection between us at least on her part."

"Sorry man. Maybe you just thought you heard something because your heart was still hurting so much from Jill's betrayal."

"Maybe so. But whatever it was I guess I was wrong and she didn't feel it the way I did, that's for sure."

"Sorry, man" Morgan placed his hand on his best friends shoulder.

Chuck turned around and got ready to do his next intro. "Maybe it's better this way. anyway. Finish out my senior year like a lone wolf. No need for any complications these last two months." He said with his back to Morgan. Chuck didn't want to show Morgan the spiraling sadness on his face that his sister had warned him about when he told her about Jill.

"Right Chuck. Besides you'll always have me."

"Thanks buddy." Chuck took a deep breath and cleared his throat. He was just about to press the mike key and speak when he thought_. 'Damn it. This sucks. I really wanted to hear that voice again.'_

"Hi, this is Chuck Bartowski again and..."

**Mar 31, 2003**

**01:36 AM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

Sarah was pissed as she opened the door to their apartment for her drunken roommate. She did have a good time with Carina and her friends at the concert in Golden Gate Park. The bands weren't half bad, the weather was nice and there was a lot of fun people watching to do. There always is on a beautiful saturday afternoon at the park but that is brought to a totally different level in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. She had heard stories about the 'love ins' back in the sixties that happened there and it didn't seem like much had changed in the almost forty years since. People dressed in very creative and colorful clothes. Interesting foods and smells, not all of them coming from the food mind you, but all in all it was a fun and peaceful afternoon.

The problems arouse when she agreed to go have one drink at a local bar with Carina and two other girls after they had eaten supper. Sarah had wanted to head back but Carina insisted that there was plenty of time and they were only going to have just one anyway. But Sarah quickly noticed that Carina's version of just one was very different than hers. It was just one that you pay for. Free drinks from hot guys didn't count towards that just one to Carina.

By about 10:30 Sarah had turned from wingman into protector as Carina was getting drunker by the minute. Each new guy was trying to get her and Carina to drink even more and then hopefully he and whatever buddy he had with him could take advantage of two drunk 21 years olds. Five drinks to the face and six hands ripped off her ass later, Sarah finally convinced Carina to go home. Carina's friends Tracy and Bridget had taken off with a couple of guys they met and left Sarah taking care of her trashed roommate. She got a cab and took her to the bus station where they could get the last bus back to Palo Alto.

A ten minute walk from the bus station to their apartment took almost an hour as Carina threw up three times, cried five times and they had to hide in some bushes so that the campus police wouldn't stop them. They were of age but getting arrested for public intoxication was not something they wanted on their records last semester of their senior year.

Sarah put her keys in the bowl on the end table and shifted Carina on her shoulder. "Ok Carina, let's get you into bed."

"Thanks Sarah.. You are tooooo good to me. What time is it anyway."

"Doesn't matter. It's time for you to go to bed."

"Okay. But just let me rest her for a sec." Carina tried to fall on the couch.

"Nope, you going in your own room and in your own bed."

"Okay, thanks..." And Carina passed out. Sarah dragged her into her room and put her on the bed. She took off Carina's sandals and jeans and left her in the T-shirt she bought at the concert and her panties. Sarah went and got a glass of water and a couple of aspirin and placed them on Carina's night stand next to her phone. Sarah hoped she would see them there in the morning when she was certain she would be needing them.

Sarah pulled the covers over her best friend and whispered goodnight with a small peck on her cheek. She headed towards her room and immediately turned on her radio. She had missed most of Chuck's show and it bothered her more than she cared to admit. She heard some solo piano piece she didn't know but it was pleasant so she left it on while she got undressed and went to the bathroom to do her nightly routine.

As Sarah was brushing her teeth she heard the song ending and was hoping to hear the voice she had been thinking about all week. She quickly rinsed and went back into her bedroom hoping that Chuck would come on. She walked over to the boombox and knelt down on the floor in front of it hoping to get as close to him as she could.

_"Well that was the great Keith Jarrett from his solo concerts in Bremen back in 1973. Simply amazing stuff beautifully recorded by ECM. We've only got time for a few more songs before we close the show for this week. Thanks for joining us tonight as always. We've got time for maybe one more request before we wrap it up. Give us a call if there is anything you want to hear."_

Sarah's heart skipped a beat when she heard him. There was such kindness in his voice and for some reason it felt so soothing and natural. It was almost like she was supposed to hear it. But somehow tonight there was something else she didn't remember hearing last time. It seemed like he was a little sadder than she remembered. Sure his voice still made her feel like it was wrapping itself around her and holding her but there was a small amount of longing and hurt to his voice this week. Like something had happened or didn't happen and it upset him. Sarah Walker knew loss and loneliness and from what she heard tonight it sounded like Chuck Bartowski did as well.

Sarah took her phone out of her bag. For some reason she felt compelled to protect him, just as she had protected Carina earlier. He was hurting or at least she thought so and she wanted to comfort him just like he had done for her last week. When just the sound of his voice and their three minute phone call made her feel alive with anticipation all week only to almost miss him tonight because her drunken roommate and best friend needed her,

She lay down on her bed and quickly dialed the number. The courage that had been difficult to come by last week when she first called in was there fully tonight. She needed to hear him speaking with her directly again and she needed to comfort him if she could.

Within three rings Chuck picked up. _"KZSU-FM this is Chuck, do you have a request?"_

In a soft voice Sarah answered. "Hi, Chuck."

Chuck's heart began to pound in his chest with anticipation. He'd almost given up hope of her calling. _"Sarah, is that you?"_

"Yes, Chuck it's me. You remember my name?" Sarah felt a fluttering in her stomach that Chuck had so easily remembered her name just from the sound of her voice. She was surprised as she had only talked with him that one time and he must get calls from lots of people all the time when he was doing his show.

_"Of course I remember your name, Sarah. To be honest I was hoping you would call back tonight." _Chuck wondered if she could sense him grinning through the phone.

"You were?"

_"Yea, I really enjoyed talking with you last week and it's kind of been on my mind ever since."_

"Mine too." Sarah whispered.

_"I'm sorry Sarah but what did you say? I couldn't hear you with all the noise here in the studio."_

Feeling a little less shy she spoke more loudly this time. "I said mine too. I enjoyed talking with you last week as well and I was kind of hoping I'd be able to talk with you again tonight."

"_Sarah I'm so glad you called. I know its silly as we only spoke that one time, but I was a little sad when you hadn't. I mean I know you are probably really busy with a million friends to see and things to do that are much more important than talking to a guy at a radio station. But I was hoping you might and ahhh I'm going to shut up now." _Chuck realizing that he was babbling turned bright red with embarrassment. He was kind of glad she couldn't see him right now.

Chuck was rambling and Sarah found it so incredibly adorable. Plus the sadness she heard in his voice was real and he seemed to be saying it was because of her not calling. She hadn't been able to call in like she wanted to and she had to let him know it wasn't his fault. That it was important to her too, he was important to her.

"Chuck, I wanted to call earlier. I really did. I had planned to listen to the entire show tonight just so I could hear your voice and maybe have you teach me some more about the music you seem to love so much. But my roommate got drunk and needed me to get her home. Unfortunately we just got in and I missed the entire show almost. I'm so sorry, Chuck."

_"Sarah it's ok. Your roommate needed you and you were there for her. You did the right thing and besides we're talking now aren't we?"_

His understanding of her actions made her feel better about having almost missed hearing him tonight. "Yes we are and I'm happy about that." Sarah paused for a couple of seconds trying to think of something to request.

_"Sarah?" _Sensing her lost for something to say next, Chuck saved her after a few seconds of slightly awkward silence.

"Yes, Chuck?"

_"Is there something I can play for you?"_

"Well my knowledge of music and Jazz in particular is pretty limited except for what my dad made me listen to when I was a kid so I don't want to disappoint you by picking something stupid."

_"Sarah that would never happen. I promise."_

"Thanks Chuck. But why don't you pick one and say it's from me. Is that ok?"

_"Sure. I know just the song. It's one of my favorites. I hope you like it."_

"I'm sure I will Chuck. You have great taste in music."

_"Thanks Sarah."_

"You're welcome and I mean it. You really do."

Chuck blushed at Sarah's compliment_. "Sarah?"_

"Yes Chuck?"

"_I'm sorry but I have to go now. I just wanted to say I'm really glad you called again."_

"I'm glad I called too, Chuck. I promise I'll call earlier next week if that's ok?"

_"Of course its ok, Sarah. I'll be looking forward to it all week."_

"So will I, Chuck. Goodbye."

_"Goodbye Sarah and thanks again for calling. It really means a lot to me that you did. Remember to listen to the song and let me know next week if you liked it. Ok?"_

"Ok I promise. Bye Chuck"

_"Bye Sarah."_

Sarah held the phone to her heart for just a second as if the warmth she felt from the call would jump right from it into her soul. After a few seconds she got up and put her phone down on her desk to charge and went over and laid back down on her bed. She grabbed her pillow and hugged it in close. She was smiling from ear to ear. She was again feeling like she was being enveloped and comforted just by the sound of another human's voice. There was such sincerity to it and how it made her feel. For some incredible and unbelievable reason she knew that voice would always comfort and calm her. It would bring her joy, happiness and would never hurt her.

Sarah listened to the song that was playing fade out when she heard that amazing voice once more.

_"Well folks I hope you enjoyed tonight's show. Next up we go back to NPR till the morning team comes in at 6am. First I want to thank you the listeners for spending time with us. It really means a lot to me that you take the time out of your evening to listen. A Salute to my ever present partner and best bud Morgan Grimes for his usual stellar work. Thanks Morgan. Game night tomorrow I promise. But finally tonight I want to end the show with a very special request and dedication. This is for you Sarah. Thanks everyone for listening. Goodnight Stanford and goodnight Sarah, sleep well. This is Aurora by the group Oregon. "_

"Goodnight Chuck, I will I promise."

Both Chuck and Sarah had huge smiles on their faces as they felt a warmth glow from deep inside them. The choice of song was perfect. It was uplifting and comforting just like their conversation had been. Somehow in just a few short minutes an even stronger connection had been bonded. They both felt happier than they had in a very long time. Yet neither one had any idea at all what the other looked like. But for right now they were fine with that. Their voices came directly from their hearts and it was enough.

**A/N2 All the music that Chuck selects for this story is available on YouTube if you want to go check them out. They are all favorites of mine and I hope maybe one reader might find something they like that they never heard before. BTW Chuck and Sarah will meet in this story. I know how it will happen, I just want to make sure everything is in place and it isn't rushed.**


	3. Vox Humana

**A/N Thanks to all the loyal readers and I'm grateful for all the reviews and alerts for this story. It really is a pleasure knowing that people are being entertained by my lame attempts at writing. For those wondering I will have chapter 19 of Life, Love and Lies up next week. I was writing it and I kind of hit a wall and decided to just write a scene of this one. Well low and behold I was 4k words in before I even took a breath. I don't know what it is about me and long chapters so I thought about breaking this into 2 as I kind of wanted to keep this story with shorter more standard 4k chapters. But it would have meant no phone call scene in it so I just decided to post all of it. I hope you enjoy this one.**

**Still don't own Chuck but I do have my season 5 DVD's already ordered.  
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**Chapter 3**

**Vox Humana**

**Mar 31, 2003**

**10:56 AM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

Sarah arrived back at the apartment after her two morning classes were over. She wanted to check on Carina and make sure she was ok after what had happened the night before. She knew she would have a vicious hangover but hoped that was the extent of the damage she had suffered. Sarah also had expected she would need to take a nap after getting only three hours sleep last night but surprisingly she felt more awake and alive than she felt in months.

She walked over to the small kitchenette she shared with Carina and began to make some coffee. As she was counting out the tablespoons of Hazelnut blend she was adding to the basket of the coffee maker, her mind wandered back to the events of the last twenty-four hours. The trip to San Francisco, the bands at the park, the interesting outfits and people she saw, the unwanted hands grabbing her ass, the drinks she threw in the faces of the drunken assholes trying to pick her up and take advantage of Carina's state of intoxication. But finally it ended up on what had happened when she got home, got Carina put to bed and went into her own room.

After placing the basket in the coffee maker and turning it own, she turned and leaned back against the counter while she waited for it to finish brewing the morning elixir. She spent the next eight minutes of brew time thinking about the sound of a certain human voice, a vox humana. A voice that soothed her, warmed her heart and gave her a peace she hadn't felt in a long time. Somehow that voice had begun to take away the loneliness she had been feeling for far too long.

Carina had been right. Ever since the 'incident' with that douche Larkin she had closed herself off. But protecting her heart from being hurt had an unexpected and painful side-effect. She wouldn't let anyone get close to her except for Carina and certainly no man was ever allowed behind her walls. With school coming to a close soon she and Carina would be off on their new careers hopefully and Sarah would sadly be completely alone. Guarding against heartache and betrayal definitely had its own set of unhappy consequences as well.

Carina was a great friend but truth be told she was Sarah's only real friend. Sure she had other acquaintances but no one else she could talk to about her dreams, her fears, her hopes and her heartaches. Carina had been it for her and though they both wanted to keep in touch their plans for their futures would put them on opposite coasts and long distance friendships were almost as hard to maintain as long distance relationships, not that Sarah had any experience with either.

But somehow this morning and in fact this entire past week things had been different for Sarah. That ever present ache of emptiness in her heart was nowhere near as painful as it had been for so long. Instead her heart had begun to be filled with a sense of caring, a knowledge that life and yes maybe even love was out there, somewhere for her in her future. The thought of that both thrilled and terrified her. How could she be thinking of life and love when there was no one in her life to share that with? Nothing and no one except for a voice coming through a ten year old boombox that her father had given her as a present. But right now, somehow that was enough.

But every time she tried to think about how ridiculous all of this was and how she was just being a schoolgirl romantic developing a crush on an actor or a singer that would never be reciprocated, she kept coming back to one undeniable fact. Chuck had told her he was hoping she would call and was saddened when she didn't. Maybe that was just his way of being kind and trying to let his listeners know they mattered so they would tune in again but somehow she knew it was more than that for him. The one thing she learned from last night was that her voice seemed to have affected him too. It showed in the song he played for her. The music was beautiful, uplifting and she couldn't help but smile when she heard it. It seemed to her that the song showed he was trying to tell her something, something sincere, something important and that somehow she mattered to him. Even though her protective brain was telling her walled up heart that it was ridiculous to think he was saying anything else than it was just a song he hoped she would like, the more she heard the melody in her head the more it spoke to her.

As Sarah was lost in her thoughts she didn't notice her best friend standing in the archway that led to the kitchenette.

"Off to never, never land blondie?"

"What? ahhh oh hey Carina. no I was just..."

Carina lifted up her hand to protest the pounding in her head. "Not so loud Sarah. I feel like I've been kicked in the head by Secretariat."

"Oh sorry Carina. Did you take the pills I left next to your bed?"

"Yea, thanks for those I took them earlier I guess while you were in class. It would be a lot worse without them. Is that coffee I smell?"

"Uhhuh, it's just about ready. Do you want a cup?"

"Desperately! Sarah, you are too good to me and I'm really sorry about last night. I know I was a jerk and made a fool of myself."

"Don't worry about it. That's what friends do for one another. Besides it seems like you are paying a big enough price this morning, no need for me to pile on."

"Thanks, but shouldn't you be exhausted seeing it looks like you made your eight o'clock class? You couldn't have gotten much sleep."

"I'm fine really. Actually I feel great as a matter of fact." Carina even in her foggy state couldn't miss the happiness that Sarah seemed to be radiating.

Sarah took the cup of coffee she had poured for Carina and handed it to her. She then took her cup, grabbed the milk from the fridge and sat down on the stool at the counter that made the border of the kitchenette. Carina walked over and sat next to Sarah on the other.

They both took long sips of their morning ambrosia and Carina looked intently over the brim of her cup at Sarah. Sarah noticed the intense glare and just smiled.

"Ok, I'm not letting you off the hook this time Sarah. What's going on with you lately?"

"What do you mean?" Sarah tried to hide another smile but was failing.

"You tried to avoid this discussion at lunch the other day and now after taking care of your drunkass roommate last night, getting maybe 2 to 3 hours sleep, going to two early monday morning classes that no one enjoys, you're smiling like you have some great big secret like you won the lottery or the New Kids on the Block are getting back together."

Sarah chuckled, she did have a bit of a crush on Joey McIntire when she was eleven or twelve. "So a girl can't be happy on a monday?"

"Come on Sarah, I'm your best friend, in fact kind of your only friend though I'll never understand why, but something has changed with you and to be honest I like this Sarah much better."

Sarah set her cup down on the counter and took a deep breath. She knew this was going to sound ridiculous but Carina was the only person she could talk to about it and she hoped she wouldn't judge her or think she was nuts though she probably was.

"Ok, but you have to promise not to laugh and you can't tell this to any of your friends. They already think I'm a bit 'different' and too straight-laced so I don't need their ridicule. I, even think this is weird so I don't want them to think I'm nuts too."

"Ok fine. I promise I won't laugh and I promise not to tell anyone why my roommate is happier than I've seen her in ages." Carina couldn't help shaking her head and chuckling only to grimace as to how it made her pounding head feel.

"Thanks." Sarah took another deep breath and tried to figure out how to begin to tell Carina the story of 'the voice, Chuck's voice'. "Ok remember you promised not to laugh." Carina nodded in agreement. "Well you were kind of right the other day. There is a guy, well sort of."

"A-ha! I knew it! Wait…. what do you mean 'sort of' a guy? What is he some kind of transvestite, maybe a lab experiment, or some sort of hot vampire like Spike? Wait I think Angel is more your type." Carina was trying to hide her giggles and her confusion.

"Carina! You promised!"

"I'm sorry, Sarah. So tell me about this 'sort of' guy you met."

"Well... that's just it, I've never actually met him."

"Ok now I'm really confused. You said that there is this 'sort of' guy that you 'didn't actually meet' but somehow he has made you this happy?"

Sarah looked down at her hands holding the half filled mug of coffee. "See I knew I shouldn't have told you anything. It is too weird. Forget I said anything, please." Sarah started to get up from her stool but Carina reached over and grabbed her forearm telling her to stay.

"Sarah. I'm sorry, no more teasing. Maybe you should just start at the beginning."

"Ok fine. Well last sunday when I stayed home while you went out with your friends, I was just doing laundry and stuff and decided to listen to some music. Seeing I don't like that pop crap you love," Carina frowned but Sarah just smirked back. "Anyway I just started to tune the radio trying to find something nice, soothing and well doing laundry on a Sunday night music. So I hear this jazz station and I used to listen to jazz with my dad in the car on long trips so I thought I'd leave it on and started working on the laundry again."

"Ok got it so far but when does the guy come in?"

"I'm getting to it. Well after the song finishes I hear the DJ come on and begin talking about the song he just played and I don't know what it was but there was just something about his voice. It was so warm, kind and I don't know, caring. He just seemed to really love the music a lot and I kind of got captivated by his voice."

Carina took another sip of coffee and pulled her knees up onto the stool. "So this guy has a great sexy voice and likes the music he is playing. Got it so far."

"Well I didn't say sexy and that wasn't what got to me but now that I think about it he does have kind of a sexy voice but there is so much more to it than just that."

"Ok but when do we get to the part where he makes you happy and are we even talking about the same guy?" Carina was still confused.

"Do you want to hear the whole story or not?"

Carina put her hand back up signifying that Sarah should continue.

"Well at the end of his little segment he asks if anyone wants to make a request and gives out the number for people to call in to the studio to talk with him."

"You didn't?" Carina looked a bit taken back. She had never known Sarah to be that forward with a guy.

Sarah nodded with a devilish grin on her face. "I know what you're thinking that normally I would never be the one to start talking to a guy. So the first time I called I hung up before I finished dialing. But there was just something about him and his voice that I just couldn't help myself so I decided to call again and this time he answered the phone."

"What did you say?"

"Well first I just told him I wanted to request an old Miles Davis song my dad used to like. He told me he would play it and sort of asked me my name."

"Then what?"

"Well we talked a little about names, he told me mine was beautiful and made a joke about his and then he had to hang up to get back to the show and we said goodbye."

"That's it?' Though Carina liked the new more aggressive Sarah she was trying to get her mind around all this. "I'm still not getting why it made you so happy." But then a look of understanding suddenly came over Carina's face like a shot. "Wait... that's why you wanted to get back so early last night. You wanted to talk to him again didn't you?"

Sarah blushed and just nodded her head shyly.

"Oh Sarah, I'm so sorry you missed talking to him because of me. I'm such a selfish bitch. You should have said something earlier when we were at the bar."

"It's ok Carina." Sarah sheepishly smiled and Carina caught on.

"So you did talk to him again, didn't you?"

"Yea, it was just before his show ended at two. When I first turned on the radio something was different about him. He seemed a bit sad somehow. Like something or someone had made him feel down for some reason." Sarah put her cup down, placed her elbows on the counter and rested her chin on her clenched hands for a second while thinking of how to put what she wanted to say next. "Carina, I know this sounds ridiculous but last week talking to him for just those three minutes and then listening to some of the rest of his show, I don't know what it was. I just somehow felt a connection. Like I was always supposed to hear that voice somehow. It was almost familiar. So when I heard the sadness in his voice I knew I had to call in again and maybe you know help him like he had helped me the week before. Stupid right?" Sarah leaned back trying to hide her embarrassment.

"No Sarah, in fact it's incredibly romantic. I always knew there was a sappy tender side to you. So what happened when you called?"

"Well he answered and at first I was a little shy but as soon as I spoke he knew who it was and said my name. I couldn't believe that he remembered me from the week before. We talked a bit and he told me that he was really happy that I called and that when I didn't call earlier that it had made him a bit sad. He wanted me to call and the sadness I had heard in his voice was because of me. That I didn't get to call in till the show was almost over. We talked some more and I don't know what it is about talking with him. Its just like somehow I know him. Which is crazy because I've never even met him, just talked to him on the phone twice and listened to his radio show a couple of times."

Carina took a deep breath taking it all in. "Wow, Sarah you've got it bad girl."

"What? No I... No Carina that's stupid. How could I have it bad for a guy I've never met?"

Carina just raised her eyebrows. Sarah Walker likes this guy. She may not even know it yet, but Carina does. "So then what happened?"

"Well I didn't know what song to request as I hadn't really thought about it because it was late and I was a bit rushed in calling."

"Sorry" Carina kind of winced as she knew she was the cause of that.

"Well I just told him to play something and say it was from me. He told me he knew just the song and then we said goodbye and I promised to call in earlier next week. He told me he would be looking forward to it."

Softness and a longing Carina had never seen from Sarah crept into those beautiful blue eyes of hers.

"Carina you should have heard the song he chose. I know it's not your style of music but it was perfect. It was like he was telling me something, that my phone call had made his night. It was beautiful and so peaceful. I don't think I have had a better night's sleep in years, even if it was just for a couple of hours."

"So, when are you going to ask to meet this radio guy?"

Taken aback for a second by the question Sarah replied, "What? I can't... no that's just... He'll think I'm a stalker. I can't ask to meet him. He'll think I'm just some crazed fangirl."

"Look Sarah you obviously like the guy. What would be the harm? All he can do is say no. And from what you are telling me he seems to like you too."

"Carina, I can't do that. It's not me. I just… I can't."

"Oh wait I get it. You're worried he's some geek with a closet full of black t-shirts that plays video games all day and night. Or maybe he's three hundred pounds or really short. I know on some of those sex lines, the women with the really sexy voices are like these overweight housewives who do it on the side when their kids are at school and stuff."

"No Carina, that's not it at all and so what if he's all those things. I like his voice and he seems like a really nice guy. I'm just not the kind of girl that asks a guy out even if it's just to meet and get some coffee or something."

"Speaking of coffee can I have another cup?"

"Yea sure, help yourself."

"Thanks." Carina got up and walked over to the coffee pot and poured herself another cup. She turned around and leaned against the counter. After taking another sip she thought for a second and said to her best friend. "Sarah, the only thing that's ridiculous about this story is the fact that you don't want to meet this guy... what's his name by the way?"

"Why do you want to know his name? You're not going to do anything to embarrass me are you?"

Shaking her hand no Carina simply responded, "Of course not. I'm just curious if I know him, that's all."

"Chuck, Chuck Bartowski."

"Nope. I've never heard of him." Carina took another sip of her coffee as she was finally starting to feel like a person again.

"Well this Chuck seems to have made some kind of impression on you and I really can't see the harm in asking to meet him. It's not like he's going to run away when he sees you. No guy in their right mind would run away from a beautiful girl like you."

Sarah blushed at the compliment. "Thanks, but I just don't know. I don't think I'm ready to ask to meet him. It just seems weird to me. I mean I don't know anything about him, maybe he's got a girlfriend, maybe he's even married, maybe he's gay."

Carina interrupted. "Sarah, you're spiraling and you're just making excuses. Promise me you will think about it ok?"

"Ok I'll think about it."

"Well I need to take a nice long shower. I stink of puke from last night and still feel kind of like shit. But Sarah, thanks again for everything. I'm sorry I kept you out so late and you almost missed talking to this guy. You're always there for me, protecting me and I love you for it."

"I love you too Carina. Thanks for not laughing and thinking I'm going crazy. I needed to tell someone and you're the only one I can talk to like this."

"It's ok Sarah, but please promise me you'll think about calling and asking to meet this guy? You've only got a few more weeks of school left before you head east so why not take a chance on something before you go and maybe have some fun?"

"Ok I promise." Sarah smiled at her best friend feeling even better about this day than she had earlier. Talking with Carina about Chuck made her feel less awkward about it. Maybe Carina was right and she should ask to meet Chuck. If anything she was definitely going to call him next sunday.

Carina kissed Sarah on the cheek and headed towards the shower. She knew she had a mission ahead of her. It was obvious that Sarah really liked this guy Chuck Bartowski and if she was wanted to convince Sarah to meet him she was going to check him out first. If what Sarah said was true and there was some kind of connection between them, Carina was going to find out if he was the nice guy Sarah thought he was. Sarah was her best friend and took care of her last night like she had so many times before. But this time it was going to be Carina that was helping her best friend.

**April 3, 2003**

**2:50 PM**

**Packard Electrical Engineering Building**

Chuck had just completed his 1:30 class on advanced digital memory systems and matrices and was leaving the lecture hall on his way to his lab in C++ programming. He was working on designs for increasing the density of the new flash memory circuits to be used in the building of solid state hard drives and portable memory devices. These systems were less susceptible to damage than spinning disk hard drives and CD/DVD ROMs. However the cost to data storage capability was significantly in favor of the spinning disks. Two terabytes of disk storage would cost the user around $10,000 and required a RAID array to protect the data. Solid state devices were limited to less a few megabytes of storage at the time and to get to terabyte level would cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Solid state storage devices also had the limitation of only so many read/write cycles. This was the great dilemma of the informational storage community. Spinning disk was still by far the most cost effective but had the inherent limitation of the mechanical failure rate of motors, moving magnetic heads as well as component failures. Solid state storage had none of the mechanical limitations but cost per meg and lifespan of the devices needed to be improved before spinning disks were replaced for large scale data storage.

Carina noticed the smiling face of her 'mark' as he was talking to some of the other students leaving the lecture hall. She had seen a picture of him in the freshman 'pig book' she found at the library the other night. She and Sarah had long since thrown out their copies. Chuck was tall, lanky, his hair was too long for her taste but he was 'cute-ish'. His deep brown eyes seemed sincere and his smile was goofy but had an honest quality to it. He seemed to know who he was and was ok with being a nerd. He was at Stanford in Computer and Electrical Engineering so he was surrounded by nerds so he was right at home in his element.

She noticed that he was wearing the basic college student uniform, school t-shirt, slightly worn jeans, back pack with laptop in it. But what did surprise her was he seemed to be wearing a set of black high-top Converse All-stars. Chuck Taylors as they were known because of their first major proponent. He wasn't wearing the two hundred dollar athletic shoes she saw on the jocks or the black combat boots she saw on the artsy crowd. He was unique in his choice of footware and in some respects she found that to be a positive. If he was comfortable with who he was maybe Sarah would be too.

Chuck took out his notes from his backpack for the lab work he was doing later and began going over it as he headed for the exit doors. His attention was focused on his work and Carina noticed he wasn't watching where he was going. This set up the perfect ambush for her.

Carina began walking towards the oncoming 'target' making like she was reading a text on her phone and mumbling nonsense to herself. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the direction Chuck was now going and plotted her collision course. Chuck plowed into Carina knocking his notes to the ground and just as his backpack was about to collide with the floor, Carina grabbed the strap and caught it just before something disastrous happened to Chuck's laptop.

"I'm so sorry. Are you alright? Clueless me I wasn't watching where I was going. I am truly sorry."

"It's ok. It was partly my fault as well. I was just reading a text from my idiot boyfriend and got distracted. No harm done really."

After Chuck knelt down and picked up the notebook he had dropped he looked up and saw a beautiful redhead looking back at him smiling. She looked like she could be a model but what was a model doing in the EE building.

"Here, I believe this is yours." Carina handed Chuck his backpack giving him another dazzling smile.

Chuck stood there for a couple of very long seconds frozen before he responded. "Oh my God thank you so much. If I had dropped that and destroyed my laptop I don't know what the hell I would do to replace it. All my work for graduation is on it. Thank you again. You really are a lifesaver..."

"Carina, Carina Miller and you are..."

"Chuck, Chuck Bartowski." Chuck gulped a bit as he looked at the woman in front of him. She was wearing black skinny jeans, knee high black boots and a black leather jacket. He shyly turned his eyes away from the beauty in front of him. "Ahhhh so your boyfriend was texting you?"

"Yea, he's a bit of a geek and his chosen form of communication is texting now."

"Nerd, not geek."

"Huh?" Carina looked confused a bit by what Chuck said.

"We prefer nerd. At least my friends and I do." Chuck was now calm enough to look at Carina again. If another 'nerd' can get a girl who looks like Carina then…

"Ok my _nerd_ boyfriend. So is that what your girlfriend calls you?" Carina smiled as she knew she had thrown the bait out there.

"Ahhh, sorry no, not really. My ex-girlfriend didn't really like either one actually." Carina noticed the bit of sadness and betrayal that entered Chuck's eyes when he mentioned the ex."

"But that's all over now and her restraining orders are quite specific." Chuck said with a grin trying to lighten the mood.

Carina couldn't help but laugh. "I like you nerd Chuck. You're funny. It's her loss then anyway."

"Thanks, Carina. Hey I've got to get to my next class but it was nice meeting you. I'm so sorry for my clumsiness earlier."

"I told you it was just as much my fault. Nice meeting you too, Chuck."

As Chuck was walking away, Carina called out to him. "Hey Chuck?"

"Yea?" Chuck said as he turned around to see the dazzling redhead again.

"Your name seemed familiar to me. Have we met before?"

"I don't think so I'm sure I'd remember someone as beautiful as you are Carina."

"Why thank you Chuck." Carina said blushing. "But I know that name from somewhere. Let me think." Carina's eyes looked up trying to give Chuck the impression she was trying to figure out where she knew his name from.

Carina faked a look of recognition "Hey I got it. Do you work for the radio station here?"

Chuck took a few steps back towards Carina grinning at her apparent recognition of his show. "Yes. I do a sunday night jazz show and some other stuff there. Have you heard it?"

"Well jazz really isn't my thing but my boyfriend likes it and has it on sometimes when I go over to see him sunday nights. He says you're pretty good."

"Tell him thanks. It's a lot of fun and I love doing it."

"Ok Chuck I will. Nice meeting you. Maybe I'll see you around sometime."

"I'd like that Carina."

Carina watched as her 'mark' walked away. _'Not bad there Chuck'_ she thought as she looked at his butt_. 'you fill out those jeans pretty nicely. _ _If I wasn't on a mission for Sarah I might take a run at you myself.'_

So Carina stood there a few more minutes and went over in her mind what she had found out. First he was cute in a geeky…ah… nerdy sort of way. He was taller than Sarah, always a plus for a girl 5'10". He didn't have a girlfriend but seemed to have had a bad breakup possibly recently. He was smart and seemed to be liked by the other students in his class. He was funny and so far at least was coming up with strong passing grades on her, 'is he worthy of Sarah scale.'

**Apr 6, 2003**

**9:48 PM**

**KZSU Studio 3**

"So Chuck is that girl going to call tonight or are you going to go into the mood spiral again this week?"

"Come on Morgan. First of all I have no idea other than she said she would but I did not go into a mood spiral."

Morgan gave him 'the look'.

"Ok fine. I was kind of sad that she didn't call last week and yes it got worse as the night wore on but she had a very good reason for not calling and when she finally did it was amazing."

"Chuck my man. So when are you going to ask to meet her? You obviously like the girl and you've never even seen what she looks like. For all you know she could be Jaba the Hutt's long lost sister or the girl from Total Recall with the three boobs, not that that wouldn't be fun but man you have got to meet her somehow."

"Look buddy, she probably has a boyfriend and I just think it could be weird and kind of creepy if I asked to meet one of the callers to my show. It just seems kind of stalkerish don't you think?"

"Look Chuck, nothing ventured, nothing gained I say. Besides she is the one who called you so if anybody is a stalker it's her."

Chuck did not like Morgan characterizing Sarah that way. His tone reflected that. "She is not a stalker, Morgan. She's just someone who wants to learn some more about jazz and decided to call in a request or two, nothing more. Besides wouldn't you think it was weird if you called into a radio station and talked to some girl DJ and they asked to meet you somewhere?"

"No man, I'd be in heaven if some cool chick asked to meet me because they like the sound of my voice."

Chuck chuckled a bit because he knew Morgan was telling the truth. "Well I think it would be different for a girl my friend."

"You're call buddy but I still think you should ask her."

"Fine, but we got a show to do ok?"

"No problem, I'll go check the board."

**Apr 6, 2003**

**10:42 PM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

Sarah had finished reading her research on North African/European relations following the Iraqi invasion the prior year that she needed for her thesis she was working on. It was regarding the growth of political unrest in Arab nations like Libya and Egypt and the possible roles of the governments in international terrorism and how that affect the European community. She closed her laptop and was reaching over to turn up the radio she had playing softly since Chuck's show began when she heard a knock at her door.

"Walker you decent?"

"Yea, just finished up some work for class tomorrow. Come on in."

"Well I didn't know if you would be lying here in some sexy lingerie dreaming about your DJ ravishing you with his deep sexy voice or you giving him a 'mike check'." Carina gave her a very devilish grin as she walked in.

"Carina! Not all of us are as obsessed with sex as you are." Sarah just shook her head laughing. Carina's blatant sexual teasing got old sometimes but she was consistent.

"Well thankfully a lot of the men I meet are, actually all of them but whatever. Have you called him and asked to meet him yet?"

"No I was finishing up some work and I told you I'm not going to ask to meet him. I don't want him to think I'm some kind of stalker and worry he's going to come home to his pet rabbit boiling on the stove."

Carina chuckled but wasn't going to let this go. "But you are going to call him, right?"

"Yea, probably after 11. They do a little news break then and I'll probably call after that and you, my perverted roommate will be back in your own room when I do."

"Fine, I'll leave you alone for your little 'penpal' action but I really don't see why you won't ask to meet him." _He is cute, single and kind of funny in a geeky kind of way_. _She should go for it._ Carina thought.

"Carina we've been through this. He has a great voice and I like talking to him and I think he likes talking to me. That's it, there's nothing more to it." _'Who am I kidding, even I don't believe that._' Sarah tried to stifle a giggle at the absurdity of that statement. She liked Chuck. She liked Chuck a lot more than she should with so little time actually talking and she still had no idea what he looked like.

Carina rolled her eyes and shook her head at her roommates lame attempt to brush off the fact that Sarah was interested in a guy for the first time in a long time.

"Ok, fine. Yes someday, maybe I would like to meet him. But it's too soon and I just want to do things my way ok? Besides I have no idea if he would be interested in meeting me. He's probably already got a girlfriend and I don't think she would take too kindly to some other girl calling him up at the station and asking him to meet her somewhere."

Carina got a bit of a sly grin on her face. "I don't think he has a girlfriend."

"What? Why not? What's wrong with him?" Sarah said a little too nervously.

Carina didn't want to tell Sarah that she had spoken with Chuck and knew it for a fact just yet. "Well if he had a girlfriend why would he be so nice and 'interested' in you on the phone?"

"Because maybe he's actually a nice sincere guy?"

"Well there aren't many of them around so..."

Sarah was getting a bit frustrated with her roommate and just wanted to lie on her bed and listen to Chuck. "Carina, can you just let this go for me please?"

"Ok fine. Just remember this. He's not going to know where to find you if you never let him know where you are."

"Goodnight Carina."

"Goodnight Sarah."

The redhead stepped back outside Sarah's room and closed the door. She headed across the hall into her own room, turned on her clock radio and tuned to KZSU. She was determined to help her roommate take a chance and meet this guy and maybe she might get a clue how by listening.

**Apr 6, 2003**

**10:59 PM**

**KZSU Studio 3**

"That was the Chick Corea Trio with the Thelonious Monk classic Straight No Chaser. We are coming up on 11 pm here at KZSU-FM Palo Alto, California. I'm Chuck Bartowski and next up will be our top of the hour newsbreak with my best bud Morgan Grimes. We will be back after that with some more great Jazz for your sunday night listening pleasure. Remember the phone lines are always open if there's something you want to hear. Morgan?"

"Thanks Chuck. In news around campus today..."

Chuck decided to go relieve himself while Morgan did his newsbreak_. _That decision to stop at Starbucks before he came into the studio was making its presence known. It also got him a chance to think about what Morgan had said earlier about asking to meet Sarah if she called tonight. He knew he wanted to meet her somehow but it just seemed too soon. He easily could have been imagining all of it. Sure when she finally called last week it seemed like she was just as excited and anxious to talk as he was and she even apologized for calling so late. But did that mean she liked him enough to actually meet him? What if they did meet and he froze which was unfortunately a common occurrence with him and women, especially beautiful women and for some reason it just felt like Sarah was beautiful. Her voice certainly was anyway. What if he made a fool of himself and she laughed and then never called again? Maybe this was all silly and meeting a caller was ridiculous. It was ridiculous wasn't it?

But if it was so absurd then why was this one caller, this Sarah, so different? Why did he feel an attraction to her voice from the moment he heard it? Why did it seem to him like they were supposed to meet someday and if he didn't ask her he might never get the chance again?

As he stepped over to the sink to wash his hands he looked in the mirror at the man he saw before him. How could someone with a voice so beautiful, so warm and so comforting as hers be interested in him? A nerdy jazz geek who just so happened to do a radio show she listened to. Maybe Jill was right. Guys like him couldn't keep girls like her.

Chuck walked over to the paper towel dispenser and wiped his hands. In the back of his mind he heard the voice of his beloved sister, Ellie, telling him he was special and someday someone equally as special would get to know the man inside and realize just how great a guy he was. Maybe Sarah...

**Apr 6, 2003**

**11:02 PM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

Sarah decided to make a quick run to get a snack and bottle of water while Morgan did the news. She hadn't realized she was so hungry while she was doing all of her homework before. She knew she had a few minutes before the music was back on and she could call Chuck.

Carina had heard Sarah head to the kitchen. Somehow she hoped she could find a way to help her friend as Chuck did seem to be a nice guy and Sarah had been lonely for too long.

_"Well that's it for sports here at Stanford this weekend. On the entertainment calendar remember that next Sunday is the 16th annual Palo Alto World Music Festival. Chuck and I will be broadcasting live from University Ave from 3 until 8pm with lots of great local Jazz and World music artists, interviews, giveaways, contests and a whole lot of other surprises planned. It's a amazing event with plenty of great food, music, friends and fun. We hope you will come down and see us and all proceeds go to the Palo Alto Arts council to support the Arts in school program. Now back to Chuck Bartowski and more sunday night jazz."_

Carina's smile grew wide as an idea formed. "Hmmm so Sarah's nerd is going to be broadcasting live next weekend. Well roomie, if you won't get off your gorgeous ass and ask to meet this guy tonight, then I guess I'm going to have to move it for you and bring it right to him." All she needed to do now was figure out a plan on how to get her there.

Sarah got back to her room just as the music started. She decided to lay down on her bed while she listened to Chuck. It helped her feel the sound of his voice hugging her as she lay there comfortable and safe. She placed her water on the night stand and reached for her phone to make the call she had been excited to make all week.

_"This is KZSU thanks for calling."_

"Hey Chuck."

_"Oh hi Sarah. I'm so glad you called. How was your week?"_

"Ok, but a little long. I couldn't wait for the weekend."

_"Oh, big exciting plans yesterday? Dancing, skydiving, trout fishing?"_

Sarah chuckled. "Oh no not that, I was kind of looking forward to sunday, sunday night actually." She said with just a hint of shyness in her voice.

_"Why? What was so special about tonight?"_ 'Please say it was so you could call in.'

"Well it was when I was hoping to do a little experiment."

"_Experiment? What kind of experiment would you do on a sunday night?"_

"Well it involves the effects of the human voice on a person's heartrate."

_"Ok, now you have me curious."_

"Well you know how sometimes hearing someone's voice can get you excited or how a mother's voice can calm a child?"

_"Yea, I can see that."_

"Well I was wondering if sometimes a certain voice can do both at the same time. Calm you and excite you all at once."

_"So what were the results of your experiment?"_

"Well I don't know for sure but I think the answer is yes. But the experiment is still going on."

"_Still going on? Wait I'm a lit..."_ All of a sudden the light went off over Chuck's head. His smile grew so big that it was a wonder his cheeks weren't hurting.

_"Sarah, can I add some empirical data to your experiment?"_

"Why of course Chuck. I was hoping you would." Sarah could not hide the smile that was building on her face as well.

_"Well from my very recent first hand experience I would say that the answer is most definitely yes. A 'certain' human voice can most definitely bring both comfort and excitement all at the same time."_

"Good, I'll add that to may data and so far the results are 100% affirmative for our small study group."

Both Sarah and Chuck couldn't hold back the laughter any longer.

_"Sarah, you have such an amazing laugh."_ He could listen to her laugh all day.

"Thanks Chuck, so do you. By the way I wanted to tell you how much I loved that song you played for me last week. It was perfect. Thank you."

_"My pleasure. I'm glad you liked it. It just kind of felt right for the moment."_

"Well it worked on me. It was beautiful."

_"So is there anything you want to hear tonight?"_

"Well seeing I loved last week's song so much why don't you pick another one for me this week."

_"Ok I think I have one that will work."_

After a few seconds of silence Sarah finally spoke. "Chuck, I like talking to you. You have a great voice on the radio, you're funny and these calls are quickly becoming a highlight of my week."

_"Mine too Sarah. I mean I love doing this show for a lot of reasons but for the past three it hasn't really been because of the great music I get to listen to. It's been something else. It's talking to you. You have an amazing voice as well."_

"Chuck I..." Sarah wanted so badly to ask if she and Chuck could meet but she just didn't want to run the risk of spoiling what was easily her favorite part of the week. Her inherent shyness held her back once again.

_"Sarah, were you going to say something?"_

"Ahhh it's nothing Chuck. It can wait. I know you have to go back to your show now. It was great talking with you and I'll be looking forward to our chat next week if that's ok."

_"Sarah I was wo... yea I'll be looking forward to our chat next week too. Maybe I can put a real long song on and we can talk longer if you want."_ Chuck knew he should have asked to see her but he could sense her shyness and didn't want to pressure her to take the next step just yet.

"I'd like that Chuck. I really would."

_"Great. Thanks so much for calling Sarah. I'll be looking forward to your call again next sunday. It makes my week that much more enjoyable."_

"Goodbye Chuck."

_"Goodnight, Sarah"_

Sarah closed her phone and couldn't help but feel both happy and sad. Happy that she got to speak with Chuck again and sad that she didn't have the courage to ask to meet him. But she just couldn't risk it yet. What they had was special to her and she hoped it was special to him as well. But would it change if they met? Would he like her when he met the girl behind the voice? Or was he just happy to leave things the way they were? She knew one thing. Carina wasn't going to let up. She would just have to figure out a way to stay away from her for the rest of the week. Or get her distracted somehow on to some new adventure. She just had to think of one.

_"That was In a Crowd by The Modern Jazz Quartet. This is Chuck Bartowski here on KZSU-FM and up next we have a song from another great vibe's player that is kind of a appropriate for a little test I was involved in earlier and yes Sarah, I can definitely say the results were a unanimous yes. Here is Gary Burton and Vox Humana."_

**A/N 2** ** I just wanted to say thank you to all the new writers that seem to be posting on the site since the series finale. I love seeing the influx of new authors and stories as the more people we have involved the longer we can keep these amazing characters alive. Next chapter** **yes you know what's coming.**_  
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	4. I've Known Rivers

**A/N Wow just made it I told some folks this would be out friday and I got ten minutes to spare. Thanks to all the readers, alerts, reviewers. I know some folks have been looking forward to this chapter. I hope you enjoy it.  
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**Still don't own Chuck but I do miss the show.  
><strong>

**Chapter 4**

**I've Known Rivers**

**Apr 8, 2003**

**12:48 pm**

**Bytes Cafe**  
><strong>Stanford<strong>

Chuck's favorite lunch spot was sitting at a small table in the outdoor area of the Bytes Cafe. It was located in the Packard EE building and that made it easy for him to get to his next class. It also had a nice view of campus and had an almost serene quiet atmosphere. It was a little cool today but Chuck simply put on his favorite school sweatshirt to keep him comfortable while he waited for Morgan to show up.

He had ordered a burger, small salad and Red Bull. The power lunch for a dedicated nerd/engineering student. Chuck had his laptop open and was going over some of the code he had written for his C++ class. Deep in thought he hadn't noticed both the ketchup that had dripped on his sweatshirt or the arrival of his best buddy.

"Hey Chuck, missed your mouth again I see."

Chuck looked up startled for a second and then noticed the big stain right above the 'N" in Stanford. He grimaced and tried to pad it away with his napkin.

"Here buddy use a little from my water bottle."

"Thanks Morgan. I was just so caught up in proofing this code for my next class I wasn't concentrating on keeping my slob factor in check."

"No problem buddy. Happens to the best of us. When I'm playing Halo sometimes I end up with half a pizza slice on my chest without knowing it. Makes for a nice snack later on though."

"Ewww" Chuck mockingly grimaced at Morgan's all too true statement of his life.

"So Chuck we all set for sunday?"

"Yea I got the board reserved, checked out the mikes and the stands. Last year after the music festival, just before he graduated and headed to JPL, Butch Landers showed me how to set up the Marti for the remote broadcast so we should be good. I tested it into the dummy load and it's making a solid 25 watts which will be plenty to hit the receiver. I got the DAT recorder and the backup tapes ready if we have problems."

"Did you get those new wireless mikes yet?"

"No but we should have them tomorrow. I checked with the guys at the conference center and they said it was no problem borrowing them. These new Sennheisers got much better range than our Vega's."

"True that. I did five minutes of dead air last remote when I went a couple hundred yards away to interview the guys at the D&D convention."

"Well that shouldn't be a problem this time. What time were you planning on beginning setup?"

"I figured we would want to be onsite by 10, set up should take about three hours so we will have two more to deal with any problems and hang out for a bit before we go live at 3pm. We can also cut some promos for the show as well."

"Sounds good Morgan." Chuck stood up and began to collect his things so he could head to his next class. As he was putting his trash together on his tray to head over to the paper and recycling containers he looked up and saw Morgan's jaw drop a good three inches. The stunned almost catatonic look on the bearded man's face he had seen many times before. It was almost always when Morgan was in the presence of a beautiful woman.

"Well hello again. It's Chuck isn't it.?" Chuck turned and saw the stunning redheaded 'model' he had see the week before.

"Ahhh yea, ... hi Carina."

"Well I'm glad I made enough of an impression on you that you remembered my name too." She flashed Chuck a friendly smile.

"Well it isn't often, read that never, a woman as stunning as you blesses the lives of such mortals as us."

"Us?"

"Yea, us nerds in general but more specifically, my friend Morgan here who's doing his impression of one of Rodin's _Burghers of Calais__from the Arts Center and me of course, your humble engineer__ing nerd." Carina couldn't help the small chuckle._

_"Well thank you Chuck but you guys seem pretty cool. Is this your partner from the radio show?"_

_"Yep, that's him." Chuck turned and waved his hand in front of the little bearded gnome. "Morgan, this is Carina, Carina this is Morgan."_

_"Ahh ye ... ahh . Ca ... Carina? Such a lovely name for such a lovely creature."_

_"Thank you Martin."_

_"It's Morgan... but I'll change it if you want me to."_

_"No, I think your name is fine as it is." She chuckled at the little man in front of her._

_"So Carina, what brings you back to nerd central?"_

_"Well I was on my way to meet a friend and saw you sitting here so I thought I'd come say hello."_

_"Thanks, I enjoyed meeting you last week. Is your b__oyfriend still texting instead of talking?"_

_"Yes but I'm used to it. I just got to remember to look where I'm going when I'm reading them. They may need to ban people from walking and texting someday."_

_"Well there was no harm done and it was entirely my __fault anyway."_

_"Don't start that again Chuck, I appreciate the kindness but I was just as guilty as you were."_

_After a few seconds of silence. Chuck realized he was going to be late for class._

_"I'm sorry Carina, but I have to get going. I have a 1:00 class and I don't want to be late. Nice seeing you again though."_

_"Nice seeing you too Chuck. By the way I heard some of your show last sunday. Did you say something about broadcasting live somewhere?"_

_"Well that was Morgan here actually" Chuck smacked his buddy on the back casing him to stumble forward just a bit before Chuck wrapped his arm around Morgan's shoulder. "but yea we are doing a remote at the World Music and Arts festival on sunday. We are going to broadcast a couple of local groups, talk to some of the other artists there and hopefully have help raise some money for some __local school arts programs."_

_"Wow, Chuck that's really cool and I'm impressed you give some of your free time to charity."_

_Chuck looked down at his feet for a second to hide his blush from the redhead. "Well we really do it because it's a lot of fun plus there's great music and great food. Helping the schools is just a bonus."_

_"Well I'm still impressed."_

_Morgan finally broke from his stupor again and spoke ,"You should come by Carina. Chuck's right. I__t really is a lot of fun though I'm sure someone like you has a very busy sunday planned already."_

_"Actually no, my boyfriend is going back to LA for the weekend so I'm free this sunday. Maybe a friend and I can stop by and say hello."_

_"I'd like that__. Well I better be going. Bye Carina."_

_"Bye Chuck. Maybe__ I'll see you sunday." Carina gave Chuck a smile and a small wave as he walked away._

_"I'll see you at home Morgan."_

_"You're turn to get the pizza Chuck." Chuck nodded and hustled up the stairs and into the EE building. Once at the top he turned and flashed Carina his dazzling smile and waved._

_"So, Carina. How do you know Chuck?"_

_"Well I kind of wasn't looking where I was going and plowed right into him last week."_

_"Lucky guy."_

_"Say Morgan__, what's his deal? Where's he from? Girlfriend? Boyfriend?"_

_"He's from LA and he definitely doesn't have a boyfriend. Chuck is very very straight, not that that there's anything wrong with that."_

_Carina kind of looked dumbfounded a bit._

_"Seinfeld, really? ok forget that but Chuck is straight and he does not currently have a girlfriend. I thought Chuck said you had a boyfriend?"_

_"I do but he seems like a really nice guy, he's kind of cuteish__ and I have a few friends that could use a nice guy like him in their lives. Believe me they are very difficult to find around here."_

_"Well I'll tell you this. Chuck has been my best friend since we were six. He's been there for me and I've been there for him. Chuck is the nicest guy I've ever known. Any girl would be lucky to call him their boyfriend."_

_"So if he is such a great guy then why is he single?"_

_"Well his ex, Cruella I used to call her, broke his heart. Actually she crushed it. She was always looking for something better and tried to change Chuck into something he wasn't. Then__ one day Chuck walks in on her and his former roommate all hot and heavy in Chuck's own bed."_

_Carina's eyes got wider. 'Could Chuck be the guy who that bitch Jill bragged about dumping?'_

_"Wow, that's cold." Carina shook her head._

_"Yea, so after Jill stomped on his heart, Chuck has been kind of staying away from the dating scene. Once bitten and all that."_

_"I can see why." __'So it has to have been Chuck__.' Carina realized. She would file that for later investigation._

_"Yea but he does seem to finally be coming out of his shell a little bit. He's likes this one girl a lot but he still hasn't asked to meet her yet."_

_"Wait, how can he like someone he hasn't even met ? Is this an online thing?"_

_"No definitely not that. Sounds crazy I know but I keep telling him to ask her to get some coffee or something. No pressure."_

_"So where does he know her from?"_

_"Well this may sound kind of stalkery but she's been calling into the radio station for the last couple of weeks and man you should see him after she calls. His face just lights up like the fourth of July. I've never seen him so happy from just a phone call. The week she didn't call in till really late, he was moping around for the last 2 hours till she did.__"_

_Carina had to hide the guilt she felt about that night. "Sounds like she's someone__ special to him. Why won't he ask to meet her?"_

_"H__e says he doesn't want to push her and come off as some creepy guy who hits on girls that call the show. He really likes her or at least her voice and he doesn't want to risk it by coming on too strong."_

_So Chuck is into Sarah as much as she is into him. I think its time for someone to get a little push. __"Hey Morgan, thanks for the info. It was nice meeting you. You nerds are pretty cool. __Maybe I'll see you guys sunday."_

_"Hey thanks for remembering my name Carina. Nice meeting you too and maybe you know, I'm a nice guy too." Morgan tried his best to give a Bartowski puppy dog face but failed miserable._

_"Yes you are Morgan. See you later." Carina turned and left the cafe. Now all she needed to do was to convince Sarah to come with her on sunday._

**Apr 13, 2003**

**09:38 AM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

Carina awoke to hear her roommate Sarah in the kitchen humming a melody while she was making coffee. Sarah Walker humming? Carina pulled back the covers and headed out to their small kitchen area.

Dressed in a grey t-shirt, flowered sleep shorts with her hair pulled back in a messy ponytail, Sarah was in a good mood, a very good mood. It was sunday and she was going to get to talk to Chuck again that night.

"What the hell girl? Are you humming, Walker?"

"Yea, I guess I am. Sorry if I woke you. I didn't even realize what I was doing."

Carina walked over and sat down on the stool while she watched Sarah grab some cereal and two bowls. "What song was it you were humming? I don't think I've ever heard it before."

"Ahhh well I don't think you have seeing you never put on anything but hiphop."

"Hey there's nothing wrong with hiphop."

"I didn't say that. It's great if all your interested in is dancing but there are lots of other forms of music you know."

"So when did Sarah 'music isn't really my thing' Walker become so interested in 'other forms of music'?"

Carina watched intently as her roommate tried to hide the blush that was forcing its way onto her perfect cheekbones.

"Ahha Gotcha! Seems to me your new found interest in music started about the same time your good mood started, didn't it?"

"Is it that obvious?"

" 'fraid so blondie."

"Well it's a song called Aurora. Chuck played it for me a couple of weeks ago. It's so beautiful and I love the melody."

Carina seeing the opening she had been looking for ever since she 'accidentally' ran into Chuck took the leap, "Sarah what are your plans for today?"

"Well I'm gonna go to the gym in a little bit, them maybe head to the library to work on my thesis some more. Nothing much really. Why what's up?"

"Well it's a beautiful day today and we aren't going to have many more sundays together so how about spending some time with your super hot best friend? We can walk around campus, or go downtown and do some shopping, maybe get something to eat and just kind of hang out like we used to freshman year. It'll be fun and I promise you'll be back home in plenty of time to drool all over your boombox." Carina gave Sarah a sarcastic smirk that only Carina could pull off.

Sarah couldn't stop the laugh that broke out looking at her best friend. "I'd like that Carina. Let's make a day of it, you and me."

"Great. You know I love this new Sarah and I'm going to miss her tons after graduation."

"I'm going to miss you too Carina. I'm looking forward to having a girls day."

_'Well it won't be an entirely girls day if I have anything to do with it.' _ "Ok great. I've got some stuff to do so I'll meet you back here at say 1 o'clock and we'll head into downtown and do some shopping. I need some new stuff before I head down to LA after graduation."

"Sounds great Carina." Sarah walked over and gave her roommate a big hug. Spending a beautiful afternoon shopping with Carina was always something she enjoyed. Too bad they hadn't had much time lately. She missed those afternoons.

After Sarah put her cereal bowl in the dishwasher she headed back to her room never seeing the big grin that had emerged on the redhead_. 'Perfect! We'll hit a few stores and then just happen to come upon a music festival where a particular nerd and his little friend will be working. _"All I have to do is put Sarah in place, then stand back and watch the show."

**2:45pm**

**Palo Alto World Music Festival_._**

**University Ave**

_"Hey Chuck I just got off the line with the station. They've got a good strong signal on the Marti. I even backed down the__ power so it doesn't overheat in this sun. We should be good."_

_"Thanks buddy. I'm setting up the landline into the voice coupler for IFB. I was just about to check the interrupt with the station." _

_"Ok I'll call them on my cell."_

_Chuck nodded he heard the interrupt. "Got you l__oud and clear studio. We're live in 15 minutes."_

_Chuck took his earpiece out and laid down the wireless mike. He needed to go over the schedule on__e more time._

_"Hey Chuck I like the new t-shirts the station gave us to give away today. Nice colors, the graphics are great and I think the listeners will like them."_

_"I agree Morgan. I was amazed when I found out we had ten full boxes this year. I heard it was some alumnus of the station that's working in TV back east that donated the money for them."_

_"Well when we're running our own technology firm we'll donate twenty boxes."_

_"Hey I'm just looking forward to graduating and heading back to LA to help __Ellie for the summer."_

_"Chuck, I've been meaning to talk to you about that. You know my lease doesn't expire till September, why not stay here for the summer? We can live like the cool bachelors we are. Parties, girls, gaming. It's our last summer before real life comes crashing in and I'm still working on my massive work avoidance skills."_

_Chuck had to laugh. Morgan had perfected the art of work avoidance. "So what will we pay for all those parties, girls and gaming nights with?"_

_"Well I figured we could transfer up to the Palo Alto BuyMore for the summer. I'm sure Big Mike would give us a good recommendation."_

_"I don't know Morgan. Ellie has busted her ass working, going to med school, and she has paid for most everything. It's time I chipped in my fair share and take some of the burden off her."_

_"I know Chuck. Ellie has been a rock ever since your mom and dad left but she's got Devon now and as difficult as it is for me to think about, she's moved on from me. Devon's a great guy and with them living together now it's got a lot easier for her."_

_"Morgan, you do realize that Ellie was never into you and basically just tolerated you because you are my best friend."_

_"I know but a man has to have his dreams and his dream girl to share them__ with. I hope you haven't given up on finding yours Chuck. I know Jill messed you up pretty good but there are other beautiful women out there and not all of them are like that self centered backstabbing bitch."_

_"Morgan we've talked about this. Even though she screwed me over and did it with my roommate I just don't need that kind of negative talk around me. Ok? We got a show to do today, the weather is great, food's good and the music should be fantastic. Let's not spoil it by talking about my two-timing ex girlfriend and cocky ex-roommate. O__k?"_

_"Got it man. But speaking of beautiful women do you think that Carina will really show up today? I mean like wow. She should be an actress or a model. She was smokin' hot."_

_"First of all I have no idea and second of all she has a boyfriend who happens to be a listener of ours so be nice and don't go all "Morgan" on her if she does__. Though I sincerely doubt she will."_

_"Y__ou know what? If she doesn't show it's her loss anyway."_

_"Ok Morgan, let's concentrate on the show now. Remember the first hour we just do live cutins and don't put the first band on live till 4."_

_"Got it. We'll give out two boxes an hour of the shirts too."_

_"You ready Morgan?"_

_"Ok Chuck you are live in 5,4,3... " __Morgan opened Chuck's mike and used his fingers to count down the final 2 seconds before he pointed for Chuck to begin._

_"Good afternoon everyone. This is Chuck Bartowski along with my partner Morgan Grimes broadcasting live from the Palo Alto World Music and Arts Festival on KZSU-FM. We'll be bringing you all the sights and sounds of one of the great traditions here in Palo Alto, We have some of the best in local world and jazz musicians performing on three stages all along University Ave. We've got great food stands set up by many of the local restaurants. We've got lots of international cuisine here from all the diverse world cultures represented at the festival. Later on we will be interviewing many of the people behind the scenes and talking to the Director of the Palo Alto Arts Council about the Arts in Schools program that is the beneficiary of all of the proceeds for today's events. Also Morgan and I have got some great new KZSU t-shirts to give away along with a few other surprises. So if you not busy why not get out of your dorm or your apartment and come down and say hello. Have some great food and hear some great music on this gorgeous northern California day. Morgan and I will be here till 8 pm but first we go back to the studio for some more great music."_

_"Annnd your clear. Nice job Chuck. I think its going to be a great day!"_

_"Me too buddy. Can't think of a better way to spend a sunday afternoon __than with my best friend."_

_"Hetero life partners" Morgan raised his hand for a high five._

_"Let's go give out some t-shirts."_

_**3:**__**05pm**_

_**Cassis Boutique**_

_**Palo Alto**_

_Sarah and Carina loved Cassis. They had been coming here since they found it on their first shopping trip freshman year. It was one of their favorite places to buy clothes and accessories. They always seemed to have really beautiful, stylish but somehow different fashions that allowed them to dress with their own unique style and not go broke doing it._

_"Sarah,__ do you like this top?"_

_"Ooooh I love it. That color would look great over the black camisole I saw over on the other rack. You should try them__ on."_

_"Ok I've got a few things I like why don't we head to the changing rooms and show each other how they look."_

_"Ok great. I'll get the 3 tops I picked out and these skinny jeans."_

Both young women tried on the various outfits they had chosen and each decided on two things they would keep. Sarah loved the purple silk top and black jeans and Carina licked out a beautiful black button up blouse and jean mini skirt.

As they brought their items to the checkout line Carina noticed the poster for the festival she knew Chuck and Morgan would be broadcasting from. They should be there now and it was time for Chuck and Sarah to meet. Carina really wanted to see Sarah happy and from her brief meetings with the handsome nerd she had a good feeling that this guy wouldn't screw Sarah over like that pretty boy asshole, Bryce Larkin. Plus if the stories she had heard about what Chuck's ex girlfriend Jill had done were true, he deserved a chance to be happy as well. All she had to do was put them together and let nature take its course.

"Hey Sarah, take a look at this." Carina handed Sarah the poster from the festival. " It's still plenty early why don't we put our stuff in the car and take a walk over to the music festival? Maybe get something to eat, listen to some music. It's only a few blocks up and sound like it might be fun. and besides I'm starving."

"I'm kind of hungry too Carina. Sound great. Just let me pay for these."

Carina then motioned to the sales woman. "Is it ok if after we pay for these if we put them back on in the dressing room?"

"Certainly. Just keep your receipt." The woman in her late thirties replied with a smile. "They look great on you two beautiful girls. If anybody asks about them tell them where you got them and I'll give you twenty percent off your next purchase."

"Wow thanks."

Sarah and Carina looked at each other and smiled in surprise at the woman's generosity. "Sound like a plan" Sarah then took her bags and headed back to the dressing room.

_'Chuck isn't going to know what hit him when he sees Sarah in that new outfit.' _Carina grinned as she walked back to the changing room. She was pleased her plan was working perfectly so far.

**3:56pm**

**Palo Alto World Music Festival_._**

**University Ave**

**"**Hey Chuck we're all set up for the first band on the big stage. I've got the feed from their board coming up on inputs 11 and 12."

"Thanks Morgan. We go right at 4pm. Let them know."

"You got it"

"5,4,3..."

"Ok we are back live at the Palo Alto World Music and Arts Festival here on KZSU-FM. Coming up in just a few seconds we will go live to the main stage for the first of our live performances. Performing will be a group of young musicians from Palo Alto High School. These great young musicians have performed for the Governor at the State House and placed second in the California All State Jazz festival earlier this year. They are going to begin the program with their version of Blue Train by John Coltrane. It's all your guys."

"Nice work Chuck. We are back with the interview with Mrs. Rivera at 4:30."

"Thanks buddy. While you watch the board I'm going to give out some more t-shirts"

Chuck began walking through the crowd handing out t-shirts to kids, moms and dads, students, local residents. Anyone who smiled got a t-shirt. It was kind of Chuck's thing. the bigger the smile the more likely you were to get free stuff.

Carina and Sarah were walking through the festival area looking at all of the vendors selling their wares, checking out the various types of food that were being sold and just enjoying a beautiful sunday afternoon. They had stopped at a stand that was selling some delicious looking fresh sushi. They grabbed a few California rolls and some fresh tuna.

After paying for her order Carina turned and looked at the crowd. About 30 yards away she saw Chuck was handing out t-shirts to a group of 3 little girls that had to be no more than 5 years old. He had such a delightful smile on his face and the girls seemed to love the attention from the kind nerd with the great smile. She took a deep breath and grinned. Now was the time to make this happen.

As Sarah was ordering her food, Carina walked over to the tall lanky nerd who was bending at the knees so he could look the 3 girls in the eye.

"Now remember girls you can't wear the shirts unless you ask an adult that's with you if it's ok. But if you are really good I'll mention your ballet recital coming up next week when I go on the air next ok?"

"Thanks Mr. Chuck." all three said in unison.

As the girls turned to walk away Chuck noticed a set of long legs standing to his left. They definitely didn't belong to one of the five year olds. He turned his head to look at who ever was standing over him and had to shield his eyes from the sun. Once he did that he saw the long red tresses of one Carina Miller smiling down at him.

"Hey Chuck. You're a lady killer I see."

"Well I am really cool and adorable with the five year old set. It's the twenty somethings I have trouble with." Chuck said with a smile as he stood up and looked at the beauty before him.

"Well I have a feeling you don't do so badly with them either."

"I know it might shock you but tall, clumsy and nerdy are not at the top of the list for most college women."

"Well maybe you've just been meeting the wrong women."

Sarah paid for her meal and noticed that Carina was not standing next to her. As she glanced around she saw her best friend talking to a tall dark curly haired guy who had his back to Sarah and seemed to be carrying a bunch of t-shirts on his arm. She saw Carina laughing and from what she could tell the man was smiling back at her_. 'Leave it to Carina to meet a guy within the first fifteen minutes we are here.' _

As she finished her food and placed the trash in the container Sarah looked back at her friend. Carina noticed her over Chuck's shoulder and waved for her to come over. _'This is it finally.'_

As Sarah got a little closer Carina grabbed Chuck's right elbow. "Oh there she is. Chuck there's somebody I'd like you to meet." She turned him around slowly and he thought he saw a vision. The most beautiful girl he thought he had ever seen was walking over toward them. She had long blonde hair that was in loose curls hanging over her shoulders. The slight breeze made it look like golden strands of wheat from a beautiful Kansas field. Her eyes were brilliant sapphire blue and her soft smile made his heart skip a beat. Carina was stunning but this woman was on a different level.

Carina smiling at her best friend and kept her hand on Chuck's elbow as Sarah got closer. Carina noticed the look in Sarah's eyes. They were warm and happy and staring directly into Chuck's. The smile on Sarah's face told Carina that she thought he was cute. But as she looked back and forth between the two as Sarah approached, she noticed that both of them had their eyes locked on each other as if she wasn't even there. _'Bingo' _ she thought. Her plan was almost complete.

Once she was standing right next to them, Sarah finally broke the connection and looked at her best friend. Chuck did the same waiting for Carina to make the introductions.

"Chuck, this my roommate Sarah, Sarah Walker." Chuck's eyes darted between Carina and Sarah. His mouth opened and Sarah looked a little stunned at his gasp. He swore that his heart was going to come flying out of his chest.

"Sarah, this is my friend Chuck, Chuck Bartowski." Now it was Sarah's turn to gasp. She put her hand over her mouth and tried to calm her suddenly fluttering stomach.

"Sarah?"

"Chuck?"

They heard each others voices and the recognition was complete.

Chuck extended his free right hand and Carina couldn't help but notice the slight nervous shake to it. Chuck had to force his mouth to close so he could breathe through his nose. Sarah extended her hand and as soon as their hands touched in a gentle but firm shake they both felt a feeling like they had never felt before. The softness of Sarah's hands coupled with the gentle firmness of Chuck's seemed to fit perfectly together. It was almost like they were made to hold each other. They continued to hold their hands together as neither wanted to break that connection.

"Sarah, is it really you?"

"It's really me Chuck."

"Wow, so nice to finally meet you in person. I didn't know when I would.. I just.. I didn't"

Sarah had to chuckle at the adorable rambling of the man whose voice had occupied her thoughts and dreams for the past three weeks.

All the while this was going on they never let go of each other's hand. Their eyes never looked away form the others.

"Guys... hello remember me?" The sound of Carina's voice finally broke the spell and they let go of their hands. Both felt the loss of that warmth and contact.

"I'm sorry Carina. Sarah is your roommate?"

"Uhhuh"

"You never mentioned that."

"You never asked." Carina answered with a devilish expression.

Sarah looked back and forth confused between the two.

"Wait." Sarah interrupted and got their attention. "How do _you_ know each other?"

"We met about ten days ago. I was walking in the Engineering building not looking where I was going and we kind of plowed into each other." The smile of gloating Sarah could see clearly.

"Yea I was looking at some notes for my next class and Carina was reading a text from her boyfriend and we kind of had that whole cliche movie meeting thing happening."

"Wait you're boyfriend?" Sarah was really confused now.

"Yea Sarah you know that guy Michael I've been seeing. The one that likes jazz." Carina's eyes were telling Sarah to play along. Sarah caught the meaning but she was going to have a long talk with her roommate later that was for sure.

"Oh that guy. I thought you two broke up last month?"

"We did but you know how it is, it's spring, he's cute, I'm me."

"Oh you're you alright." The hint of sarcasm in Sarah's voice was hard for Carina to miss.

Sarah then turned her attention back to the man she had hoped she would one day meet now standing in front of her.

"So Chuck what are you doing here?"

"Oh yea I forgot. Morgan and I are broadcasting live from here till eight o'clock. Oh and we are giving out t-shirts." Chuck then awkwardly looked through the ones he had on his arm for one of the soft pastel blue and yellow ones to give to Sarah and Carina.

"I'm all out of the good colors for you two. But we've got more in boxes over where we are set up I can give you."

"Thanks Chuck."

Chuck's smile lit up his face and the sparkle in his eyes sent chills down Sarah's spine.

"Ohh you want to come over and see what we are doing? You can meet Morgan too. I mean if you re not busy but you probably are and that's ok too we can do it some..."

Sarah reached over and touched his forearm to stop his rambling. "Chuck we'd love to meet Morgan."

Chuck looked back and forth between Sarah and Carina "Ahhh well Carina has already met Morgan." Sarah looked at her roommate again and once again the cat that caught the canary face was on display.

"Wait.. how.?."

"It was the second time I saw Carina. It was at the cafe outside the Engineering building on tuesday. Morgan and I were having lunch and Carina walked up and said hi."

"So Carina just happened to be in or near the Engineering building twice in the last two weeks and ran into you both times?"

"Yea, this time it was a beautiful day and we were eating outside."

Carina's eyebrows shot up and she tried to force an innocent look on her face but her roommate of four years saw right through it.

"Just a lucky coincidence I guess." Carina shrugged her shoulders.

Sarah's eyes closed ever so slightly as she turned her head.

"Come on I'll introduce you. I've got to do an interview in a few minutes anyway."

"Chuck we don't want to hold you..."

"Please Sarah can you stay for a while? I'd really like to show you what we are doing here and maybe we can talk some more. It would mean a lot to me." Chuck gave her such a sweet puppydog face and her heart just melted. She gave him her best most sincere soft smile back. "I'd like that very much too Chuck."

Chuck's smile got even wider as he looked at the woman whose voice had captivated him. "Ok let's go." Chuck turned and headed back over in Morgan's direction. Once Chuck's back was to them walking away, Sarah grabbed Carina's arm and whispered_ "You and I are having a big talk later"_

Carina just smiled and swayed her hips just a little more pronounced as she followed Chuck. She glanced back over her shoulder at Sarah who was still standing still. When Carina winked at her Sarah just shook her head and followed along.

"Hey Morgan you remember Carina?"

"Carina, you made it! I was hoping you'd come by." Morgan pulled the headphones he had been leaning into down around his neck. Morgan then turned his attention to the beautiful blonde that had just stepped up between Chuck and Carina.

"Well I told you I might come by."

Chuck gestured with his hand. "Morgan buddy, this is Sarah."

"Nice to meet you, Morgan." Sarah smiled and extended her hand in greeting.

Morgan's jaw dropped for a second as he looked back and forth between all three of the people in front of him.

Chuck noticed that Sarah still had her hand out and was becoming a little bit self conscious about it.

"Morgan, did you hear me? This is Sarah."

"Oh Oh sorry for my rudeness I'm just a little shocked to meet you. Chuck didn't tell me you were coming by." Morgan then took Sarah's hand and shook it.

"Well I didn't know I was coming by either." Sarah then glanced at Carina who was still trying to keep her innocent face.

"Chuck, this is THE Sarah, right?"

"Ahh well ...yes?" Chuck could not hide the blush that was flying up his neck.

Carina noticing Chuck's embarrassment couldn't let the moment pass without needling him. "THE Sarah? I thought I just introduced you to my roomie? What does he mean by that? Does that make you THE Chuck?

"Um well.. let's see... how do..."

Sarah eyes got real big as she looked at Carina. She wanted to crawl under the nearest rock.

Carina couldn't control herself any longer then burst out laughing.

"Look I'm sorry you two. I don't mean to laugh but between Chuck's babbling like a 6 year old and Sarah being totally mortified I just couldn't stop myself. You guys are just too easy."

Morgan of all people seeing that both Chuck and Sarah wanted to change the subject real fast saved them both. "Sorry to interrupt but Chuck we have that interview in 8 minutes."

"Oh yea sorry, sorry. Give me the mike and ifb and I'll head over there now."

"Here you go."

Looking over at Sarah, Chuck noticed her nervousness. "Sarah, would you and Carina like to come with me? I just have to interview the head of the Arts council about the why we need to raise so much money to help these kids."

Sarah looked over at Carina for a second to see if her roommate wanted to come. "You go ahead Sarah. I'm going to stay here and let Martin..." three sets of eyes were now glaring a bit at Carina. " ahh, sorry, let Morgan tell me what all these knobs and buttons do."

"You sure?"

"Yes I'll be fine."

Sarah looked back at Chuck who was smiling at her in a way that made her knees weak. The hope in his eyes was as plain as the curls in his hair.

"Ok"

"We won't be gone long Carina. I promise."

"That's ok. I'm sure I can keep Carina entertained Chuck." Morgan said almost giddy at spending some time alone with the redheaded amazon.

"Thanks buddy." Chuck then extended his hand to show Sarah the way like a gentleman and Sarah graciously nodded and stepped forward. Chuck placed his hand on the small of her back to guide her for a sec and they both felt chills as he did so.

Chuck and Sarah were both nervous. Both had been wondering about what it would be like when they finally met ever since that first night Sarah had called in to Chuck's radio show. Both had felt an almost electric connection when their eyes met for the first time. Both felt the bond when they first shook each other's hand. And both had felt their stomach's flutter when they finally realized who each other was.

Now they needed to figure out who was going to speak first and where do they go from here. Fortunately fate took over as the head of the Arts Council noticed Chuck walking towards her and headed right over to the two attractive young people.

"Charles, so good to see you again? Is it time for my interview?" She leaned in and gave him a quick hug.

"Nice to see you again Mrs. Rivera. Yes it is. We go on in about 4 minutes."

Teresa Rivera was a tall Hispanic woman in her mid to late forties. She had been Director of the Palo Alto Arts council for the last 8 years. She had been instrumental in organizing the festival since its inception.

"Charles, how many times have I told you to call me Teresa. You and the station do so much for the council and these kids. You are like family to us."

"Thank you, Teresa. The kids are great and it is a great cause."

Teresa then looked and noticed Sarah standing there quietly. "Excuse me for being so rude miss." She turned back to Chuck. "Who is this lovely young woman Charles? Your girlfriend I hope?"

"Ahh no. no…not my girlfriend. This is my friend Sarah, Sarah Walker. Actually we just met but we've kind of known each other for a little while."

"Nice to meet you Sarah. I hope Charles doesn't get too embarrassed but I have to tell you something. You couldn't meet a nicer young man than Charles here. He is so kind to the kids. They adore him when he comes each week. He's handsome as you can surely see, he's funny and one of the kindest young men I have ever let. He's a real keeper this one."

"Nice to meet you too Teresa. I'm beginning to get that impression myself." Sarah turned and smiled at Chuck who looked down and scuffed his feet on the asphalt. His humble nature was incredibly endearing.

Just then the station got on the IFB in Chuck's ear and told him he had 1 minute till the interview. "One minute to us Teresa."

Sarah took a step back not wanting to intrude. "It's ok Sarah you can stay right there. I don't mind."

"This is Chuck Bartowski broadcasting live from University Ave sight of this year's Palo Alto World Music and Arts Festival. First I'd like to thank the girls from Miss Cleo's ballet school for being here today. They are having a great time and are all very excited about their spring recital next weekend. They told me it was going to be 'Awesome'." Sarah noticed the three 5 year olds jumping up and down all excited in their pink and purple KZSU t-shirts Chuck had obviously given them.

"I am joined by Teresa Rivera, Director of the Palo Alto Arts Council. Mrs. Rivera, all of the proceeds from today's festival go towards the Arts in the classroom program sponsored by the Arts Council. Can you give our listeners a little background on why this is so important?"

"Thank you Charles as you know funding for the Arts in schools..."

As Sarah stood there watching Chuck do the interview with Teresa she couldn't take her eyes off of the tall lanky nerd standing a few feet away. She listened and watched this time as the voice that seemingly had found a place in her heart long before she had even seen the man it belonged to, came from his kind handsome mouth. Her mind drifted as she began to think about what it would be like kissing those lips. Would they be soft, tender, and giving? Had he thought about kissing her already or was she just fawning wistfully?

She heard the sincerity in his voice as he asked Teresa his questions. It was the same sincerity she had been listening to on her father's boombox. He seemed genuinely interested and excited about the cause this event was for. There was an incredible honesty to his voice from the beginning but now seeing him in person and in a place he felt so comfortable in she knew it had all been true. She longed to be that comfortable with who she was. What she had felt when she first heard that voice was real. She had learned the hard way that you can see the truth in someone's eyes and when she looked at Chuck's they told her that Teresa was right. Chuck Bartowski was a keeper.

"Thank you so much for taking the time to join us today Mrs. Rivera. I hope all of our listeners will come down and join us on this beautiful day and help such a worthy cause."

"Charles, we at the Arts Council want to thank KZSU for being here broadcasting live. It is such a thrill for these kids to know that their band got to perform on the radio. Plus I want to thank you personally Charles for all the support you give us and these great kids. They look up to you and you have made a difference in their lives."

"Thank you Mrs. Rivera and believe me they have done the same for me. Now let's throw it back to the studio for a news break." Chuck turned off the wireless mike and reached out to shake Teresa's hand but she would have nothing of it. She pulled Chuck into a hug. After she let go she turned to Sarah. "It was very nice meeting you Sarah. I hope to see you again some time."

"Nice meeting you too Teresa. I'd like that."

"Remember what I said Sarah. Charles here, he's one of the good ones." Teresa had seen the adoration in Sarah's eyes when Chuck was speaking. It was a look she remembered fondly seeing on herself when she first met and fell in love with her husband of twenty years.

Sarah nodded as Teresa said her goodbyes to Chuck. As she left she turned and said "Tuesday as usual Charles?"

"Yes Teresa. See you Tuesday."

Chuck turned his attention back to the beautiful blonde standing next to him. "So Sarah shall we head back and find Carina? Hopefully Morgan hasn't driven her nuts yet. He has that effect on women sometimes."

Sarah laughed. When Chuck heard this it was like Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone all singing together it was so beautuful. It the most amazing and wonderful sound he had ever heard.

"You're funny Chuck"

"I try to be. A little humor goes a long way toward making people feel comfortable."

"Chuck can I ask you a question?"

"Of course Sarah."

"What did Teresa mean about Tuesday and what was she talking about when she said the kids love you when you come each week?"

"Well ever since sophomore year I've been going to the Arts council on Tuesday afternoons. I try to teach the kids something about music other than what they hear on the radio. I bring my iPod and I make small playlists for a different kid each week. I play some well known stuff and then try to slip in some stuff I think they might like they would never hear otherwise. We talk about music and how important it is and what it can teach them."

"Wow, I'm impressed. No wonder she and the kids love you."

"I get as much enjoyment out of it as the kids do. Many times even more."

"Well I still think its pretty nice of you."

They had begun walking back towards Morgan and Carina when Chuck stopped suddenly deep in thought. He knew it was now or never.

Sarah noticing Chuck was no longer beside her turned around and walked back the few steps toward him.

"Is something wrong Chuck?"

"Sarah, would you like to go to dinner with me sometime? I know we just met officially but I have to be honest with you. I haven't stopped thinking about you since that first night you called in to my show. So I was hoping you might want to get some dinner or coffee or something. It's ok if you don't I'll completely understand if you find it cre.."

"Chuck." Sarah interrupted his rambling.

"I'd love to go to dinner with you."

"Really? You'll go out with me?"

"I was going to ask you to get some coffee with me last week but I thought you might think I was some kind of stalker calling in to the radio guy and asking to meet him."

"I wanted to ask you the same thing but I didn't want to pressure you."

Sarah leaned in, got up on her toes and gave Chuck a soft peck on the cheek. When she leaned back she saw the most amazing smile she had ever seen in her life.

"What was that for?" Not that I minded but..."

"For being a nice guy Chuck. I guess I owe Carina a thank you too."

"I think it's we that owe Carina a thank you." There was a certain confidence to his voice that Sarah really liked.

"I think you're right."

"We better get back I have to introduce the next band in a few minutes."

As they were walking back their hands developed a mind of their own. Without being conscious of it their fingers became intertwined. Carina standing next to Morgan noticed the interaction between them. She elbowed Morgan slightly and nodded her head towards the couple when she got his attention. Both best friends of the newly born couple smiled at each other knowingly.

"Hey buddy you got about 2 minutes til' the next band starts ok?"

"Thanks Morgan. I hope you didn't bother Carina too much with all the techno babble."

"No Chuck, it was actually kind of interesting in a nerdy kind of way."

"Good I wouldn't want to drive away our new friends."

"Somehow Chuck from what I can tell I don't think thats gonna happen anytime soon."

The four new friends all smiled at each other. Chuck then put his earpiece back in and turned the wireless mike back on. He walked over to near the stage to ask the band leader what song they were going to play.

Sarah stepped up to Carina and surprised her with a small hug. While she was holding her roommate she whispered softly in her ear. "Thank you Carina."

"Sarah you don't have to thank me. You're my best friend and I want you to be happy."

"Well thank you anyway. But I still want to know what you were doing at the Engineering building not once but twice."

"Hey a girl has to have some secrets now doesn't she?"

"This is Chuck Bartowski on KZSU-FM. The voice of Stanford University. Next up we are going to hear from the Stanford Jazz Ensemble and their version of the great Gary Bartz's song I've Known Rivers. A piece based on a poem by Langston Hughes."

**A/N2 ****I had some trouble with the ending trying to balance what was in effect their fourth conversation with just meeting each other. I hope it wasn't too cheesy. LL&L next week.**


	5. The Way You Look Tonight

**A/N Thanks again for all the reviews, PM's, alerts and comments about this story. I'm glad you are enjoying it as much as I am writing it.  
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**Chapter 5**

**The Way You Look Tonight**

**Apr 16, 2003**

**8:12 PM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

"Damn it! No! no! no! Nothing's right, not a single damn thing! It has to be perfect and all this is just crap!"

Carina looked up from her laptop in her room where she was working on her final presentation for her Journalism class. For the past ten minutes she had heard her roommate Sarah, making a commotion like she had never heard before. She had also heard language that her normally quiet and reserved best friend rarely uttered except when talking about a certain bastard ex-boyfriend. Carina had decided to give her roommate some space but it had gone on long enough. Whatever was bothering Sarah had to be dealt with if she wanted to get any work done.

So she clicked save on her work, closed the lid of her computer, got up and headed across the hall. When Carina stood in the doorway of Sarah's room she saw a sight she had never seen in the four years the two best friends had lived together. Sarah was standing in a black bra and matching panties with her head in her closet. Looking around Sarah's bedroom, it looked like her closet and drawers had exploded. Every single piece of clothing, dresses, jeans, blouses, tank tops, everything was thrown randomly across every surface in her room.

"Why can't I find anything that works!" Sarah exclaimed from inside her now empty closet.

Carina thought she heard what might have been cracking in Sarah's voice.

"Sarah, sweetie. What's wrong? You've been swearing like a truck driver for the past ten minutes and your room looks like a disaster area."

Sarah turned around and slumped against the wall, sliding down to sit on the floor pulling her knees to lace covered chest. "What's wrong? Everything! It has to be perfect and not one god damn thing is!"

Carina could see tears running down Sarah's cheeks before she hid her head against her knees. She walked over, moved a pink silk blouse off the floor and onto Sarah's bookcase and sat down next to the distraught blonde. Carina put her arm around her roommate and pulled her in close. Sarah, feeling the comfort of her best friend's embrace began to calm a bit but the tears still flowed freely. Carina placed her left hand on Sarah's back and made slow calming movements as she felt her own t-shirt moist from Sarah's tears.

"Ok Sarah, whatever it is, we'll fix it. Just tell me what's wrong and we'll figure out a way to make this better."

"Thank you." Sarah's breath hitched as she wept into Carina's shirt but she found her heart rate slowing down.

The redhead began to caress Sarah's hair as she tried to slow her breathing even more. "Ok sweetheart. What's going on?"

"It has to be perfect and nothing's right."

"What has to be perfect and what isn't right?"

Sarah lifted up and waved her hand around her room. "This. None of this is right and I want it to be perfect." Carina was still confused as Sarah seemed to be simply repeating herself over and over. Sarah sniffled and picked up a crumpled t-shirt off the floor and blew her nose into it. When she finished blowing her nose and was wiping the tears from her cheeks she looked at the garment, screamed "No!" , and burst into tears again. She burrowed herself back into her best friends shoulder and held the now wet and snot covered t-shirt to her chest and cried.

"Please Sarah tell me what's going on. You're starting to scare me."

Sarah lifted up and held the t-shirt out for Carina to see. "This! I can't even get this right!"

"Sarah it's just a t-shirt."

"No it's not! He's gonna hate me!" Sarah's voice cracking the whole time as she spoke through her tears.

Carina took the t-shirt from Sarah and pulled her friend in close once again. "No one's going to hate you Sarah, I promise." Carina shifted the t-shirt in her hand and when she laid it down next to her she saw some lettering that had been silk screened across the front.

KZSU-FM

A light went off on Marblehead neck. Carina pulled Sarah even tighter and swayed slightly against the wall holding the blonde mess.

"It's ok. Chuck's not going to hate you. It's just a promotional t-shirt and we can just wash it. It will probably look even better after it's been washed a few times anyway."

Sarah looked up with her damp red eyes looking hopeful. "You think so?"

"Yea, it will be fine. I promise. Now tell me what is really going on ok?"

"Okay. Chuck and I are going to dinner on friday and its our first real date. He wouldn't tell me where we are going because he wants to surprise me. He just said we were going to a nice dinner and then someplace special."

"Sounds romantic."

"Exactly. That's why it has to be perfect. I like him Carina, and I want to show him by looking perfect for our date and I don't want to wear any of this old crap."

"Ahh, now that I can help you with." Carina said with a warm grin.

"Really?"

"Come on Sarah, look who you are talking to." Carina flashed Sarah a smirk and Sarah had to chuckle.

"Yea, I almost forgot. Carina and clothes. A match made in heaven."

"Both in them and out of them!" Carina gave her a devilish grin this time.

Sarah couldn't help but laugh and smacked Carina on the shoulder.

"Hey, what's a roommate for. First we will pick up all this stuff and put it away, well except for this bugger covered t-shirt. That goes in the laundry. Then we'll look in my closet and if we don't find anything there, you and I will go shopping tomorrow after class. Ok?"

"Thank you Carina. I love you."

"I love you too, roomie." Carina pulled her best friend in close once again and they each gave each other a kiss on the cheek. Their bond had been strong for four years. They were the sisters that neither of them ever had but always wanted.

Sarah spoke as they both stood up and began to pick up the remnants of Sarah's clothes bomb. "Carina?"

"Yea?"

"Why were you over at the Engineering building?"

"What do you mean?" Carina tried to put on her best innocent face. She knew after the Arts festival Sarah would eventually ask her about how they happened to be there the day of Chuck's remote.

"Carina." Sarah lifted her eyebrows as she waited for the redhead to respond.

"Ok, so I went to spy on Chuck all right? I love you Sarah and I just wanted to see who this guy with the great voice was that had made you so happy. I wanted to know if he was for real or not."

"You didn't have to do that you know. I told you I didn't want to come off as a stalker or anything and that is what you go and do anyway?"

"Yes, but there's a difference."

"What difference?" Sarah lowered her eyebrows at Carina questioningly.

"I don't want to have his babies!"

Sarah leaned back in shock. "What? I don't want... I mean..."

Sarah looked at Carina trying to hold back from bursting into laughter as the red glow of embarrassment blossomed on Sarah's face.

"Gotcha!" Carina pointed her finger at the blushing blonde.

Sarah smacked her friend's had away and chuckled.

"Look Sarah." Carina said more seriously. "I was just looking out for my best friend. I wanted her to meet a great guy, maybe live a little in her last semester of college and stop being so lonely. You hide it well but not well enough from me."

"Thank you Carina. But I'm ok really. I have you and a few other friends."

"I know but I'm not going to keep you warm at night, or take you to dinner, or make you freak out because you don't have anything to wear on a first date."

Sarah snorted as she looked around the disaster of her bedroom.

"I am pretty pathetic aren't I?"

"No Sarah, that's just the thing. You're not pathetic at all, you're amazing. You're kind, loving, smart and beautiful. I just wanted to maybe see if I could help you find someone that will see the same great things that I see in my best friend."

The tears began to flow down Sarah's cheeks again and Carina wasn't too far behind.

"Sarah, something happened to you when you heard Chuck's voice. I saw it clear as a bell and I liked what I saw. You lit up when you thought about him or listened to him on the radio. I admit I was a little skeptical at first but I wanted to see if what you thought or felt was real. Was this guy worthy of you? Or was he just like so many other guys we meet. Even worse, was he an egotistical asshole like Bryce. So yes I decided to go find him and check him out."

"And?"

"And.. what I found was nothing like I expected. Sure he's a nerd but he's a cute nerd." Sarah grinned at that thought. Chuck was definitely a cute nerd.

"He seemed kind, humble and a really great guy. He also seemed to be interested in you."

"Wait... how... did he mention me?"

"No he didn't. But his friend Martin did."

"Morgan."

"Oh yea. Morgan, said that Chuck liked this girl but he hadn't even met her yet."

"But how do you know it was me?"

"Well I asked him a few questions and he told me about this girl who had a great voice and had been calling into the radio show."

"But that could have been anyone."

"No, and again I just want to say how sorry I am about this."

"Wait, what are you sorry about? What did you say to him?" Sarah's heart began to race again.

"Nothing like that, Sarah. Morgan told me that a couple of weeks ago the girl that Chuck liked didn't call in until the show was almost over. Chuck had been bummed all night but after she called he couldn't have been happier." Carina took a step toward Sarah and placed her hand on her forearm. "Sarah, I'm so sorry you had to take care of me that night."

"It's ok Carina. I'll always take care of my best friend, you know that."

"I do and thank you. But I still felt bad so I decided to make it up to you, well... and to Chuck too by arranging for you two to meet somehow."

"How did you know they would be at the festival?"

"Well the weekend before when you and I were here, I turned on Chuck's show while you were in the bathroom. Morgan was giving the news and he mentioned something about the festival so I asked him when I saw him that day at the cafe. He told me when and where and invited me to stop by if I wasn't doing anything and well..."

"So it was all planned? The shopping, the festival, the meeting, all of it?"

Carina nodded. "Look Sarah, I know you didn't want to push things or come off as stalkery. So I decided not to tell you. That way it would look like a total accident. Chuck didn't know you were my roommate and to him, well to both of you at the time, it seemed like just a lucky coincidence."

Sarah got quiet. She could not believe that Carina had done all of that for her.

Not being able to read Sarah's expression Carina got a little concerned. "You're not mad at me Sarah are you. I mean.."

"No God no, nothing like that. I just can't believe you would go to all that trouble for me. I just don't know what to say."

"Well thank you would work." Carina tilted her head and put her hands on her hips.

"Ha ha. But you're right thank you. Thank you so much. Even if this date is a disaster, that was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." Sarah then pulled her roommate in for another hug.

"Sarah, I love you. You're my best friend. Chuck seems like a really nice guy. I can't promise it will all work out but it just seemed like the right thing to do. Ok?"

"I know and no matter what happens I love you for it."

Sarah leaned into Carina one more time and the two roommates held each other for a few minutes.

"Ok. Let's go find you something to wear."

"Thanks Carina... for everything."

The blonde and the redheaded roommates turned around and began to pick up all of Sarah's clothes that were strewn around the room. Carina found a pair of sleep shorts and another t-shirt, making sure not to hand her the bugger one. She tapped Sarah on the shoulder as she held them out to her.

"Sarah, not that I mind seeing my roommate in nothing but her bra and panties but I think you might want to save that show for your third date with Chuck."

Sarah looked down at her almost naked self and her face turned red. She quickly grabbed the clothes from Carina and put them on.

"Carina, let's just worry about my first date ok?"

"Suit yourself but aren't you just a little curious about what's Chuck going to be like? I mean everyone knows what happens after a third date well sometimes first in my case." Carina gave Sarah her most seductive look and winked at her.

Sarah just laughed and continued to pick up the mess of her wardrobe. After a few seconds of silence she glanced over at her roommate who was folding some tops she had found on top of Sarah's nightstand and smiled. As Sarah continued to put stuff back in her closet she thought about what Carina had said. Truth be told a small, but very curious part of her was thinking about just that and hopefully the morning after.

**Apr 18, 2003**

**4:12 PM**

**Chuck and Morgan's apartment**

"Come on buddy its going to be fine."

"Damn. This is when I really miss living with Ellie."

"Hey..."

"No offense Morgan but you are not much help when it comes to picking out clothes to impress."

"Aww come on Chuck. That was one time. I had no idea that restaurant had a dress code."

"I know but that sport coat they gave you was about 4 sizes too big and looked like your grandfather wore it back in the fifties. You looked ridiculous." Chuck couldn't help laughing remembering that night he and Morgan were supposed to meet Morgan's mom Bolonia and her latest boyfriend.

"Well I never liked that guy anyway. Plus I did not want to hear about what he and my mom did while I'm up here at school. No child should ever hear about their parents "preferences" in bed. Yuk..."

Chuck looked in his closet for the tenth time and still couldn't decide what to wear on his date with Sarah and he was picking her up in a little over two hours.

"I just want to look nice for Sarah. My god, she is so beautiful and I can't believe she is going out with me. I just don't want to look like a dork."

"Then call my future wife. She should be home from the hospital by now."

"You're right. I'm never going to figure this out on my own."

Chuck walked over to his night stand and picked up his phone. He hit speed dial #1 and waited for his beloved sister to answer.

_"Hey Chuck"_

"Hey Ellie. I hope I didn't catch you at work."

_"Nope. Devon and I just got home after an 18 hour shift at the hospital. I was just going to jump in the shower and get some dinner."_

"Ahh the life of an intern."

_"Yea, How's things at school?"_

"Great, Great. things are going good. Looking forward to graduation."

_"Chuck, I'm so proud of you. Magna Cum Laude from Stanford. You're amazing."_

"Well I come from good stock and had a good teacher/sister."

_"Thank you Chuck but this is all on you. So what's up?"_

"Nothing, ahhh I.. just..need."

"Chuck's got a date!" Morgan yelled from across the room.

"_What? Really? Is she nice, Pretty_?" Chuck pulled his phone away from his ear as he had been anticipating hurricane Ellie.

_"Devon, Chuck's got a date!"_

_"Way to go Chuck, that's awesome" _Chuck heard in the background.

"Yea, She's great, beautiful. Sarah... that's her name and I are going to dinner tonight and I need help picking out what to wear. You know I'm clueless about stuff like that."

_"Ok, so first where are you taking her?"_

"Well I got reservations at that nice Mexican restaurant you, Devon and I went to last fall and then I was going to maybe go for a walk in the Gardens I volunteer in."

_"Sounds nice Chuck. So casual but you want to impress her right?"_

"Yea, I do."

_"Ok, well I'd go with your nicest pair of jeans, and maybe that green and white striped button down shirt I got you last Christmas. Not too formal but not too casual either. Are they clean?"_

"Yes sis, their clean."

_"Well nothing will gross a girl out more than some funky clothes you took right out of the hamper. And Chuck?"_

"Yes, Ellie. I'll iron them."

_"Good boy."_

"You taught me well sis."

_"So Sarah where did you meet her?"_

"Well she called the radio station one night and we got to talking. She has this amazing voice. You should hear it. Well we talked a few more times and she happened to come by the Arts festival last sunday with her roommate who Morgan and I had met before and she introduced us. We kind of hit it off, so I asked her if she wanted to go to dinner with me. I expected her to say no way but she said yes. So I got a date!"

_"I'm really proud of you Chuck. Just be yourself and remember the old girlfriend rule."_

"I know, no mention of Jill, I promise."

_"Aces Charles, you're aces."_

"Ahh a dad quote, I'm impressed."

_"Well call me tomorrow and tell me how it went ok Chuck?"_

"Thanks, Ellie. Love you!"

_"Love you too Chuck."_

Ellie turned to her handsome boyfriend and couldn't contain her squeeeee any longer. She had never really liked Jill and even though it crushed Chuck when he found her cheating on him with his dickhead of a roommate, she was actually kind of glad. Chuck was a great guy and deserved so much more than someone like her. They had a lot in common but Jill was always looking for something better and only stayed with Chuck because she couldn't stand not having a boyfriend. Someone she could control. Someone who would do anything she asked. Well at least till the next sucker came along.

She and Larkin deserved each other. Ellie had never told Chuck about the time Bryce hit on her when he stayed with them for spring break instead of going back to Connecticut. He had snuck into her bedroom one night drunk, while Devon was working a double at the hospital. She threw him out on his ass but never had to heart to tell Chuck. He looked up to Bryce because he had all the confidence Chuck didn't. He was handsome but he knew it. Cocky and arrogant. The first year they lived together Bryce was good for Chuck. He got him out of the dorm and helped him make some new friends. Chuck wasn't as shy around people when Bryce was around. Plus Chuck was a good wingman. He was a nice guy and would gladly talk to whatever girl was left behind while Bryce tried and usually succeeded in getting her friend alone somewhere. But Ellie had never seen the way Bryce treated women till that March in Burbank.

Ellie knew Chuck liked this Sarah. She could hear it in his voice when he talked about her. She just hoped Sarah knew what an amazing man she was going out with tonight.

**6:27 PM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

_DING_

Sarah leaned out the door of her bedroom. "Carina can you get that? That's probably Chuck. I'm just finishing up in here. I need five more minutes." Sarah called to her roommate nervously.

"Relax Sarah, you look amazing. Chuck's going to love you in that outfit." Carina walked over and pressed the button on the intercom.

"Who is it?"

"Hi Carina, It's Chuck. I'm here to pick up Sarah."

"Come on up. She'll be ready in a couple of minutes."

"Thanks."

Chuck could feel his heart beating in his chest as he walked up the stairs to Sarah's apartment. He hadn't been this nervous on a date well... ever. He had been excited for his first real date with Jill but they had been friends for a while and she had kind of just said they were now dating. This was different. He had asked an incredibly beautiful girl, someone with the most captivating voice he had ever heard out to dinner and she accepted. Chuck Bartowski got a date all on his own. No setups, no sister's involvement, just a boy, standing in front of a girl, asking her to go to dinner.

_'You better not blow it Bartowski!' _Chuck thought to himself as he stood in front of the door to apartment 216.

_knock, knock, knock_

Carina walked over and opened the door. She saw the handsome nerd standing nervously holding a bouquet of flowers. She smiled at the thoughtfulness. Chuck seemed like the perfect gentleman and though she had been given flowers by a guy before, she felt Chuck was somehow different. He wasn't just doing it to get into Sarah's pants. He genuinely wanted to do something nice for the redhead's roommate with no agenda. It was rare and refreshing.

"Come on in Chuckie. Sarah should be out in a second. Would you like a beer, wine, water?"

"No thanks. I'm driving but a water would be great." Chuck's throat felt like the Mohave dessert and the water might help calm his racing heart.

"Ok." Carina went into the kitchenette and pulled a bottle of water from the small fridge she and Sarah shared.

Handing it to Chuck she could see how nervous he was. She found it cute as he swayed back and forth with his lanky frame. _'Chuck sure does clean up nice' _ Carina thought as she looked up and down at her roommate's date.

"You look very handsome tonight, Chuck"

"Ahh I ahh thank you?"

"It's true. I guess you nerds do have some style."

"Well. my sis... oh dear god." Chuck's face turned beet red as he realized he had just admitted he had help from his sister.

Carina couldn't help but giggle at his embarrassment.

"It's ok Chuck, your sister has good taste." She said with a smile trying to relieve some of his pain. "Actually I think it's kind of cute you asked her for help to look your best for Sarah."

"I just... well... I didn't... ahh I... oh god. I just wanted to make a good impression is all."

"Relax Chuck, let me tell you a little secret." Carina leaned in and whispered softly into Chuck's ear. "I don't think you are going to have any problem making a good impression on Sarah." She gave Chuck a warm seductive smirk followed by a wink.

Just as Chuck was trying to quell his blush, he heard a door open from down the hall in the small two bedroom apartment. As he turned toward the noise Carina took a step back so she could watch the reaction of both her beautiful roommate and her handsome date. She wasn't disappointed.

Wearing black skinny jeans, black boots, a black silk top with tan palm frawns and her gorgeous blonde hair in a french twist, stood the most amazing sight Chuck had ever seen. Carina watched as his jaw dropped when he saw Sarah. _'Perfect' _she thought. All of their work shopping, planning her outfit and hair had the exact effect they were looking for. Chuck was stunned in the cutest, most innocent and adorable way_. 'My work is done.' _Carina thought contently.

She then looked at her roommate as she nervously walked out into the living room area. She and Chuck never broke eye contact since the moment Chuck had turned around and saw her. Carina saw that Sarah was equally impressed with her date for the evening.

Carina looked back and forth between the couple and knew she better say something to break the spell.

"Chuck..."

"Oh ahh yea... hi"

"Hi."

The couple stood motionless again. Their eyes still locked on to each others.

"Chuck, I thought you had something for Sarah?"

"Oohh yea sorry... These are for you." He lifted the flowers and handed them to Sarah his hand shaking ever so slightly.

"Thank you Chuck. They're beautiful."

"I.. I .. didn't know what your favorite flower was so I just figured I'd give you a bouquet of different ones and maybe I'd get lucky." Chuck immediately winced when he realized what he had said.

"Oh god... I didn't... oh please Sarah I would never... I... Oh. geesh" Carina and Sarah both couldn't help but giggle at his uncomfortable babbling.

"It's ok Chuck I understand... They're beautiful_. _Thank you"_ 'God he is so adorable when he babbles like that' _Sarah took the flowers and went into the kitchen to get something to put them in.

Trying to put his embarrassment behind him he decided to change the subject. "Sarah, you look amazing. I mean wow..."

"Thank you Chuck, you look very handsome yourself." Sarah smiled over her shoulder at Chuck. She couldn't get over the sincerity in how this man with the amazing voice spoke. There were no lewd undercurrents, no ulterior motives. He simply complimented her because he meant it. Even Carina heard it and she had much more experience with men complimenting her to get into her pants.

"Well I've got to get in the shower so I'll leave you two alone. Have fun tonight." Carina walked over and gave Chuck a small kiss on the cheek. "Told ya." She whispered. She pulled back and Chuck gave her an appreciative smile back.

Carina them walked over and gave her roommate a hug. This time she whispered. "His reaction was perfect. He's a keeper."

"I think so too and thank you for everything Carina." Sarah whispered back as she pulled her a little tighter.

Carina then turned and headed down the hall towards her bedroom with a contented grin on her face.

"Shall we get going?"

Sarah nodded and Chuck reached out and took the jacket Sarah had picked up from the hook on the wall next to the door. He held it out for Sarah to put on.

"Thank you Chuck." The two left the apartment and headed downstairs for their date. Both happier and more excited than they had been in a long time.

**6:55 pm **

**Reposado Restaurant**

The short ride over to the restaurant had been enjoyable. Chuck played some soft acoustic music on a CD he had burned for the occasion. The conversation was light and comfortable. Neither felt like this was a first date. Their conversations these past weeks when Chuck had been in the studio and she in her room had given them a comfort level that easily carried over into the car. They talked a little about their classes and their roommates. Happily all of the nerves and anxieties they had had just before Chuck had arrived to pick Sarah up had dissipated quickly and morphed into a feeling of comfort they were both reveling in. Even the awkward silences that accompanied most first dates weren't there.

When they pulled into the parking lot and parked the car, Chuck jumped out and ran around the other side to open the door for Sarah. As she turned to get out of the car Chuck reached out his had to help her out. With no hesitation she took his hand and immediately both felt something. It was like what happened at the Arts festival. As soon as they touched each hand felt like it had found its mate. They fit perfectly together and both Chuck and Sarah's hearts skipped a beat.

Once Sarah was standing they let go, but each felt the loss of that special contact. As they reached the front door of the restaurant Chuck reached out and held the door for his date.

"Thank you Chuck. It's nice to know there are still some gentlemen in this world. You're going to make all the women in here jealous."

"My pleasure. Besides the way you look tonight I'm going to be the envy of every guy in this place."

Sarah smiled back as they walked towards the hostesses' table.

"May I help you?" Said the older brunette woman with a friendly smile.

"Bartowski? I believe we have a reservation."

"Yes, Mr. Bartowski. You're table should be ready. Just let me check." The hostess turned and headed off into the dining room.

Looking around at the elegant Mexican decor, Sarah's eyes grew brighter. "Chuck, this place is amazing."

"Well I hope you like Mexican. My sister, her boyfriend and I came here last fall when Ellie and Awesome came to visit for the weekend."

"Awesome?"

"My sister's boyfriend. We call him Captain Awesome."

"Wait you call him Captain Awesome?"

"Wait till you meet him. Everything he does is awesome. Climbing mountains, jumping out of planes, flossing."

"That's funny."

Well I'm a funny guy."

"Excuse me Mr. Bartowski? You're table is ready. Come this way."

The hostess escorted Chuck and Sarah to a table by the window that looked out over the street and had a great view of the rest of the restaurant. Chuck politely pulled out Sarah's chair for her and helped her slide back in. He then sat down across from Sarah and she saw him mouth 'perfect' to the hostess who gave him a small but polite wink.

Sarah couldn't help but notice that Chuck must have requested the best table in the house for their dinner. She flashed a small smile at him but decided not to embarrass him by commenting on it. She somehow knew he did it just for her and wasn't trying to show off. He wanted the night to be special and so far he was succeeding.

"So where were we?"

"Well I think we have established that you are funny which is good because I'm not funny. I'm kind of dull actually." She tried to hide the hint of sadness and loneliness in her voice. She grimaced inside as she had let her nerves get the best of her.

"Sarah can I tell you something?"

"Ok Chuck." She replied with a slight bit of a hitch in her voice. Had she said something wrong? Was he not having a good time?

"Sarah, I know we don't know each other very well yet but from what I've seen so far you're amazing. Please don't put yourself down. I can't tell you how happy I am to be here with you tonight. Let's just relax and enjoy our evening, please?"

Sarah's heart was beating noticeably faster listening to the sincerity in Chuck's voice. It had been what had attracted her to it in the first place. It was comforting, sincere and made her feel safe.

"Thank you Chuck. That means a lot to me coming from you. I'm really happy I'm here with you tonight too. That was sweet."

"Sweet? Thanks for making me feel like I'm eight."

"Well for the record, you're not so bad yourself."

"Please, I'm fantastic." Chuck said jokingly.

Sarah looked up and into Chuck 's eyes and responded with as much sincerity as she could muster. "Yea, you are."

After a few seconds or a few minutes, neither of them could say for sure, their gaze was broken by the arrival of their waitress.

"Hi, I'm Maria. I'll be your server this evening. May I start you off with a drink?"

"Ahh yes I'll have a Dos Equis and the lady?"

"I'll have a glass of Sangria"

"May I see some ID please?"

"Of course."

Chuck and Sarah both searched for their ID's and handed them to Maria. Smiling as she saw they both were over 21 she handed them back to the young couple.

"I'll be right back with your drinks and take your order."

Sarah picked up her menu and began to look at the incredibly appetizing offerings. Sarah loved Mexican food and was in awe of the selection. That is until she looked to the right hand side of the menu and noticed the prices. Chuck caught her reaction and decided to preempt ant attempt to order something small.

"Sarah, it's ok. Please have what you want. That's why I brought you here."

"But Chuck, its so expensive. Let me pay for mine please."

Chuck reached out and placed his hand right hand on Sarah's left which was nervously tapping her fingers on the white linen table cloth. The sensation both thrilled her and calmed her at the same time.

"Sarah, a gentleman pays for the lady, especially when the gentleman was the one that asked the lady out."

"Chuck?"

"Please Sarah. I want to do this. I haven't really done anything like this in a long time and I just want to make this evening special for you, ok?"

Sarah could feel the corners of her eyes getting moist. No one had ever wanted to do anything special just for her. And tonight it had happened twice. She quickly blinked and turned her head slightly trying to force the moistness away.

"Ok Chuck but next time I'm going to be the one who asks and I'll pay."

"Deal." Chuck's face lit up like with a grin that could outshine the sun. Had Sarah just basically said there would be a second date? He squeezed the hand he was holding just a little tighter telling her his answer would be yes.

Sarah's heart just floated. His smile was incredible. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. What made it even more special was she thought she knew why he was smiling. Tonight might be their first date but it certainly wasn't going to be the last if she had anything to do about it.

Chuck looked into those deep sapphire eyes for a few seconds longer before he reluctantly pulled his hand away and went back to looking at the menu.

Once Maria returned with their drinks, Sarah ordered the grilled SeaBass and Chuck ordered the adobo marinated pork chop.

While waiting for their food to arrive the conversation was flowed freely once again. They talked some more about their classes and what they enjoyed studying. They found that both of them were driven academically and that Sarah just needed an A on her thesis to finish with a 3.9 GPA while Chuck was going to graduate with a 3.85. He still cursed that C he had gotten in English second semester freshman year when he was pledging the fraternity.

They also talked about Carina, Morgan and Ellie. Chuck noticed that Sarah never mentioned anything about her family but he decided to let that go for another time. God he loved thinking about that. Another date with Sarah.

After the meals were finished Sarah left to go to the ladies room. Chuck had a feeling that she was going to try and catch Maria and pay for her share of the meal at least. So while she was gone he called Maria over and took care of the bill. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sarah come out of the restroom and walk over to Maria. She spoke briefly but Maria simply smiled and said it had already been taken care of. Sarah looked over at Chuck and she saw the grin of someone who had beaten her at her own game. She chuckled and shook her head as she walked back to the table.

"Can I at least pay the tip?"

"Nope, everything's all set."

Sarah smiled again at the very handsome gentleman seated across from her. "Thank you Chuck. This place was incredible."

After a few more minutes of conversation it was time to leave the restaurant for the second part of their date. As Chuck and Sarah stood up and Chuck helped Sarah on with her jacket, Maria came by once again.

"I hope you enjoyed your meal and thank you for dining with us."

"The food was excellent." Chuck replied.

"Yes it was, can't say much about the company though..." Chuck turned and saw Sarah said with a huge grin.

"Hey...See I knew you were funny, Sarah!"

Marina smiled at the two in front of her. "Thank you and might I say you two make a very lovely couple. Come back soon."

"Thank you, we will." Chuck nodded and blushed just a bit at the idea of them being a couple.

Once they were back in the car, Sarah looked at Chuck and asked. "So where are we off to now Chuck?"

"Well it's a surprise so you'll just have to trust me and wait till we get there." Chuck glanced over at the incredible woman sitting in the passenger seat.

"Ok Chuck. I trust you." Sarah smiled back at Chuck as he turned to look at her more directly before he turned back to concentrate on the road.

Even though it was just their first date. Sarah did trust Chuck. She wasn't sure why but ever since she had heard him on the radio that first night she trusted him. Someday maybe she would tell him that but tonight she was just going to let go and enjoy her evening with this amazing man.

**9:56 pm**

**Elizabeth Gamble Garden.**

As Chuck pulled into the parking lot off of Embarcadero Road, Sarah noticed the sign for the Gardens. She had heard about them and always wanted to come but had never found the time to visit. Especially after what had happened with Bryce, she had kept pretty much to herself and her studies and her only really good friend had been Carina. She loved Carina with all of her heart but Gardens and Carina just didn't seem to go together.

Chuck parked the car and hustled over to open the door for Sarah. Extending his hand to help her out of the car once again she gladly took it. As they began to walk toward the entrance they both looked down at the same time and noticed neither had let go. They both looked back up and smiled and the look in their eyes spoke volumes without ever saying a word. They almost subconsciously interlocked their fingers and walked towards the entrance. Sarah then glanced over at the sign and noticed the hours the Garden's were open.

"Chuck, this is beautiful but it's closed. I don't think we can be here."

Chuck looked to his left at the beautiful woman beside him. "It's ok Sarah. They know me here. I come here a lot at night just to sit and think. Plus I kind of volunteer to help maintain the gardens."

Sarah looked up in amazement. Last sunday she had found out Chuck volunteered teaching music to kids and now he volunteers in the gardens? "Chuck that's ahhhh wow."

"It's nothing really. I enjoy it. I've met some really nice people who taught me a lot about plants and gardening and its good exercise too. Plus in the fall we get to keep some really great vegetables and fruits that Morgan uses when he cooks. He has a real talent as a chef."

"Well I'm still impressed." Sarah squeezed his hand a little tighter as they continued walking.

Chuck began explaining what each area of the gardens held. It was dark out but the lights in the park and the almost full moon gave it a very picturesque quality. But what made it even more special was the way Chuck described it. Sure Chuck was an admitted nerd but the way he talked about the beauty of this place touched her heart that he was sharing it with her.

After about twenty minutes walking around the various sections of the two and a half acre property they came to a Gazebo. Chuck extended his hand signaling Sarah to sit down. She gladly stepped up into the Gazebo pulling Chuck down next to her.

Sitting in comfortable silence for a few minutes Sarah looked over at Chuck and noticed him deep in thought looking out over the flowers and shrubs blooming with the joy of a new spring, a new season of hope.

"Chuck this place is important isn't it?"

Chuck was pulled back from his thoughts by the captivating sound of Sarah's voice. He turned and shifted his hips so he could look directly at her.

"Yea, I like to come here to think. It's so peaceful. Back in LA I love to go to the beach when I need to do some thinking but I found this place a couple of years ago and it just hit me. Here the beauty of nature in all its forms can help your mind think things through more clearly, ease your pain and kind of just help you know your place in the universe."

Sarah saw something in Chuck's eyes when he said 'ease your pain'. This amazing man had felt pain in his life. She didn't know what from but she knew it was real. Just like his voice had shown her his true heart, his eyes showed her his true soul. Chuck was so open, so honest. She envied that. She closed herself off to deal with her pain. Chuck seemed like he had to feel it openly to deal with it and move his life forward.

"God that must sound cheesy." He laughed trying to lighten the moment.

Sarah chuckled and marveled at how he seemed to make her laugh even at the most serious moments.

"No Chuck. It's beautiful. I'm glad you have a place like this and I'm honored that you shared it with me. Thank you." With that Sarah did something that she had wanted to do ever since she saw him in her living room. She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.

They both pulled back and stared into each other's eyes for a few moments. They felt the connection that was growing and though it frightened each of them just a bit they both knew they wanted it. What had begun that first moment when Sarah had called into Chuck's radio show had grown into something very special. They each had both found something they had been missing for a long time, possibly their whole lives.

"Sarah, may I have this dance?"

Sarah was taken back a second but the look on Chuck's face told her that he was sincere. "Chuck, there's no music?" Chuck's smile didn't waiver. He simply stood up and extended his hand. "Wait, is there a band that's going to pop out from behind the rose bushes?" She said with a bit of a laugh. Seeing he was serious, Sarah took his hand and stood up ever so close to her handsome date.

Chuck's grin grew wider. "No band but close." He then took his other hand and reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his iPod. He unwrapped the ear buds from around it and graciously handed her one.

"Sarah, you are just so beautiful tonight, I think I know the perfect song." They each placed an ear bud in their ear as Chuck cued up the song. He hit play and placed the iPod in his shirt pocket. He quickly reached his right hand around Sarah's waist and took her right hand in his left. Sarah followed by placing her left around Chuck's neck.

When Sarah heard the opening bars from the Nelson Riddle orchestra, she melted into Chuck's arms. This was one of her mother's favorite songs. She remembered hearing it as a child and seeing the smile it brought to her mother's face. What made it special tonight was she knew Chuck had picked it for her, for this moment, for this place. As they danced to the incredible voice of Old Blue Eyes, she felt like a princess. She felt a warmth, a comfort she didn't know she could ever feel. As they danced around the Gazebo in the glow of the garden lights something magical happened. The aroma of the gardens spring blossoms, the moonlight shining through the trellis of the Gazebo all added to this incredible moment. Two people who had found a connection in each others voices were being pulled even tighter together by another voice, a voice that many consider the greatest of all time.

Chuck had amazed her again. Dancing in his arms was like flying. Like their feet barely touched the Gazebo floor. As he held her close it was like their bodies were molded to each other. Each a perfect fit for the other.

When the song ended Sarah let go of Chuck's hand and placed both hands around Chuck's neck. Chuck placed his hands around Sarah's waist and they stared into each other's eyes once again. As he looked at Sarah he knew this was the moment. That realization pushed aside all the nerves and he slowly leaned in and their lips met. Their first kiss was gentle, tender and full of promise. In this moment, in this place all that mattered was each other. It was like the entire universe was just this Gazebo in the middle of the Gamble Gardens.

After the kiss ended Sarah wrapped her arms around Chuck and snuggled into his shoulder. She closed her eyes and just reveled in the warmth she felt. She knew this man would somehow never hurt her like someone else had. He would protect her and most of all protect her heart. Just like she had felt Chuck's voice wrap around her those weeks ago, being in Chuck's arms for real she found peace. His voice had always comforted her from the first time she heard it but being in his arms for real was so much more.

Tonight Chuck had gone out of his way to do something special for her. To make her feel special and here he had shared something very personal with her. He had brought her to a place that meant something deep and personal to him. He trusted her enough to share this place with her and she would cherish it.

Sarah leaned back and looked up into those deep brown eyes of Chuck and smiled for what had to be the hundredth time tonight. "Chuck, I'm so glad you brought me here. You told me we were going someplace special and I'm honored that you chose to share this with me." Sarah then stood on her toes and kissed him tenderly again.

"Sarah, I wanted to share this place with you because _you_ are special. Don't ever forget that. I know this is just our first official date but I feel like we belong here, together. I felt it the first time you called into the show, the first time we talked, the first time I saw you at the festival and when I first saw you tonight in your apartment."

"Chuck, I felt it too. When I first heard your voice on the radio I knew it was something I was meant to hear for a long time. I know it's crazy but I won't deny I felt it."

Chuck leaned in one more time and their third kiss was now not just tender but filled with a growing passion. As the kiss progressed their mouth's opened as both realized they wanted more. The longing, the fire was there as their tongues explored each other for the first time. As they kissed their arms held each other tight. Finally they realized they needed to break the kiss before they went further than they each wanted to go. What was growing between them was too special to rush into too fast. Their time would come and when it did, it would be even more incredible because they waited. This moment at this place was too important and they both wanted to remember it that way.

"Sarah, it's getting late and I think I should take you home."

"Okay Chuck. But thank you for the best first date, hell the best date I've ever had." She gave him a quick peck on the lips and flashed the smile that made his knees buckle.

"Mine too. But I have a feeling just sitting home watching TV would be the best date ever as long as I was with you."

Sarah then looped her arm into Chuck's as they walked back to the car. As they were about to turn into the parking lot Sarah looked back over her shoulder at the place the most romantic moment of her life had happened. Dancing with Chuck to Frank Sinatra in that Gazebo was indescribable and she wanted to cherish it for a few seconds more.

As she turned back she looked up at Chuck who had been watching her. He knew what she was thinking as they had already established an incredible chemistry between them. He smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in tighter. Once at the car he opened the door for Sarah and held it as she got in.

Just as he was about to close the door Sarah said, "Chuck?"

"Yea?"

"Gardenias."

As he walked around the car to the drivers side he smiled.

"Yep, best date ever!"

**A/N 2 I've never really been to Palo Alto. I've just driven through it. But I did research all of the locations in this story and they are all real. When I found the Gardens, that part of the chapter basically just wrote itself. Hope you enjoyed it. I have a business trip next weekend so I'm not sure when the next chapter of LL&L is coming but it's going to be a fun one! ;)**


	6. Meeting of The Spirits

**A/N Thanks again for all the support. It seems last chapter was the best received of this story so far. I hope that means my writing is getting better. But thanks for all the reviews, alerts, and kind words. They mean a lot. I hope all the readers here will check out some of the new stuff being posted by some of the newer writers on the site. There is some really great stuff being posted lately by some first timers along with some of the great writers we have all come to know and love. But please if you do find something you like especially if its by someone just starting out, take the time and leave a review. It makes a big difference and will encourage them to grow and stay writing. We will need an influx of new writers to keep this community and these great characters alive for hopefully many years to come.  
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**I hope you enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed writing it.  
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**Still don't own Chuck but my season 5 DVD's should arrive next week!  
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**Chapter 6**

**Meeting of The Spirits**

**Apr 19, 2003**

**9:35 AM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

Sarah Walker was happy. As she lay on her bed she thought of the man she had spent last evening with and smiled. Last night had been the best date, no, actually the best night of her young life. Chuck had made a herculean effort to make last night special for her, for them. From the flowers to the amazing dinner, to the walk in the moonlight at the Gardens and finally their amazing dance in the Gazebo. It had been a night like you read about in those Harlequin Romance novels or some overly fluffy FanFiction about some movie or TV show where the hero and heroine finally end their ridiculously stretched out will they won't they dance and admit their epic love for each other.

But last night had been real and it had happened to her. What made it so incredibly special was that Chuck did it all just because that is who he is. He didn't do it to get her into bed. He simply wanted her to feel special, feel cared for and most of all like she really mattered to him. The night was perfect. He was perfect.

Chuck had been the perfect gentleman when he stopped things before they went too far. If she was completely honest with herself she knew that if he had asked her to come home with him she would have in a heartbeat. They both knew it. They both knew he wanted to as well. Yet he didn't push. He backed off wanting to take things slow and they both knew that when they were ready it would be magical. It was so obvious that it would be and they didn't want to diminish that moment for an evening of wanton lust.

Yes, Sarah Walker was happy and Sarah Walker was falling, and falling hard.

"Sarah, you up?"

"Yea in here Carina."

Carina, dressed in her pink baby doll sleepwear walked into her roommate's bedroom and could not help but notice the smile on Sarah's face. She walked over and sat on the end of the bed as Sarah scooted up to sit upright against the headboard.

"I'm a little surprised to see you here this morning. Kind of thought you might be waking up someplace else."

Sarah blushed a deep crimson and Carina decided to continue her teasing.

"So I guess Chuckie didn't make the cut? The nerd was boring?"

Sarah frowned at her roommate. "No, far from it actually." A smile creeping in to the corners of Sarah's mouth.

"So did he come on too fast and try and make a move on you?"

"Nope, he was a perfect gentleman."

"Ahh I was right, boring." Carina's smirk was getting a little too large.

Sarah chuckled. The one thing Chuck was definitely not, was boring.

Seeing the smile on her face Carina was bit confused. "So if Chuck wasn't boring and didn't come on too strong, then why are you here the morning after your date with this guy you are so obviously smitten with?"

"Smitten? Really Carina?"

"It's a perfectly good word to describe you blondie and stop avoiding the question."

"Because I'm not you Carina, that's why."

"Hey! I'm not that bad. You should be so lucky."

"Well, sorry to disappoint you but the lucky one in this room right now is me." Sarah's smile grew wider than Carina had seen in years. Wider than at anytime with that dirtbag Larkin.

"So, that good huh?"

"Amazing!"

"So spill!" Sarah sat up a little higher and the excitement in her eyes was blinding.

"Carina it was the most romantic night of my life. I couldn't have dreamed a better date with a more amazing man. He is so kind, so thoughtful and had planned an evening that just made me feel so special. I can't believe it actually happened."

Carina, noticed a distant look come over Sarah's face as she just kind of stared through her and off into nothing in particular. She knew that Sarah was remembering something. "So what is that look for, remembering something in particular?"

"Yea, after he took me to this incredible Mexican restaurant, he took me to the Elizabeth Campbell Gardens. You know that place I tried to get you to go with me to freshman and sophmore years?"

"Oh I remember. Dirt, bugs, grass and flowers, in other words snoresville."

"Well it was amazing. I don't know how he knew I wanted to go there but it turns out he is a volunteer at the place, so we kind of had free reign even though it was officially closed."

"Wow, sneaking into an open park after hours, how daring!" Carina was trying to hide her laughter but was failing.

"Oh shut up. It was great. We walked through the gardens and he told me about all of the different flowers. He also showed me some of the beds of bulbs he had planted the fall before. Then after about a half hour we turned a corner and came to this beautiful Gazebo. We sat down and just enjoyed the peace and quiet for a bit. I haven't had that many first dates but I've never felt so comfortable in simple silence on a first or any date for that matter. We just enjoyed being there together. We started talking for a bit and suddenly he stood up and asked me to dance right there in the Gazebo."

"Wow, no guy has ever done anything even close to that with me. They are much more likely to be looking for a different kind of dance after buying me dinner at a nice restaurant. "

"I know. So he reaches out his hand and takes me in his arms. I'm half expecting he hired a band to pop out from behind a shrub but he pulls out his iPod and hands me one of the ear buds. He hits play and we danced to one of my mom's favorite songs by Frank Sinatra. It was so incredibly romantic." Sarah sighed at the memory of that special moment.

"Sinatra? Really? No guy I go out with even knows who he is."

"But that wasn't even the best part." Sarah closed her eyes for a few seconds trying to remember the feel of Chuck's lips on hers.

Carina shifted on the bed closer to Sarah. "Ok, come on Sarah don't leave me hanging."

"Well after the song was over, he held me in his arms and everything was just perfect. The moonlight, the music, the place, the man. We just stared into each other's eyes and he leaned in and kissed me. It was... just wow. The best kiss of my life." Sarah reached up and touched her lips with her fingers remembering what Chuck's lips felt like once again.

"All right Chuckie! I wasn't sure the nerd had it in him to read the signals. They can be kind of clueless. I take it you were sending him the signal."

"Oh yea. I wanted him to kiss me so badly at the moment if he hadn't I would have in about two seconds. But it was even better than I was imagining. Much better."

Carina looked at her roommate and saw the pure joy of remembrance and with it, the blossoming of love. Though she was really happy for her best friend, a part of her was a little bit jealous. No man had ever done that for her or made her feel the way Sarah was feeling with just that one kiss. Sarah noticing the slight hint of sadness in Carina's eyes decided to change things just a bit.

"Carina, thank you." Sarah leaned in and pulled Carina into a big loving hug.

Breaking out of her slight feeling of sadness and jealousy, Carina was caught off guard by Sarah's expression of thanks. "Thanks? For what?"

"For making last night possible. If you hadn't done what you did then we wouldn't be sitting here talking about the great date I had. Instead I'd be sitting here feeling lonely and a little sorry for myself. But you did something for me no one has ever done and even if things don't work out with Chuck, I'll always have last night thanks to you."

Sarah could see the tears welling up in Carina's eyes and pulled her in one more time for a another but a bit more tender hug. "So thank you Carina for helping me and being my best friend. I love you."

"I love you too, Sarah."

After a few moments Carina pulled back and was back to her mischievous self. "So you still haven't told me why you are here and not in Chuckie's bed right now riding the nerd for all he is worth."

Sarah broke out laughing. That was the Carina she knew and loved. "Well after we kissed a few more times he said it was getting late and he should take me home. He knew I would have gone home with him if he asked, but he was still the perfect gentleman and wanted to take things slow and not spoil a great evening by doing something one or both of us might not be ready for."

"Wow, he really isn't like any guy I've ever known."

"Me neither. Chuck is... Chuck is... perfect." Sarah looked off into space again and smiled as she thought of the handsome DJ.

Carina could see that Sarah really was smitten, very smitten. Her protective nature towards Sarah and her own less than spectacular luck with men had the warning signs going off. Next time she saw Chuck she was going to make sure he knew what she would do to him if he broke her roommates heart like Bryce had. She honestly liked Chuck and didn't really believe he would ever do anything purposely to hurt Sarah but it never hurt to deliver the warning if he did.

Just as Carina was thinking about talking to Chuck, Sarah's phone chirped. She reached over to see who the text was from and smiled brightly. Sarah flipped her phone open and read the text from Chuck. Her smile grew wider if that was even humanly possible. _'Yep, he's perfect!'_ She thought.

"Ok so I can see your 'perfect' new boyfriend is doing the 'perfect' date 'perfect' next day follow up. Gag me. I'll just go make us some coffee. And I won't be taking any sugar this time. In fact I'm going to need an insulin shot if I talk with you any longer about the handsome nerd and your 'perfect' evening."

Sarah broke out of her daydream and slapped Carina on the arm. She then pursed her lips and kissed the air. Carina just rolled her eyes and headed to the kitchen. She was truly happy for Sarah and glad she had played a part in making it happen. Now she just needed to let the nerd know she'd be watching out for her blonde best friend.

**Apr 19, 2003**

**9:37 AM**

**Chuck and Morgan's apartment**

Chuck had been up for two hours. Even he was stunned that he had gone out for a run on a saturday morning instead of sleeping in like he usually did. But for some reason he felt more alive than he had in a long time and he wasn't tired in the least even after running six miles.

Oh who was he kidding. He knew exactly why he felt so awake and full of energy. The reason he was in such a great mood was without question a tall, blonde, goddess he had spent the previous evening with. The source of his new lust for life? Ms Sarah Walker.

While Chuck was showering off the sweat from his run he thought about their date. He thought about their dinner and how he loved her smile when she tasted her meal. The Seabass had been delicious and when she shared a bit with him it felt like they had been dating for years even though this was their first official date. That was one of the amazing things about Sarah he thought of as the warm water rinsed off the remnants of his workout. When he was with Sarah, it felt like they just fit. Like they belonged together. That her being with him was like home. Like the same safe feeling he had when he was with Ellie. But of course there was the entire other part of being with this stunningly beautiful young woman that being a gentleman he tried not to think of while he was standing naked in the shower. But oh that part of being with Sarah Walker was definitely something he hoped someday he _could_ allow himself to think about in the shower and maybe he'd have some company when he did.

_'Stop that Chuck' _He mentally chastised himself_. 'You're not that kind of guy who disrespects women.' _But a part of him was still all male and boy was Sarah all female!

Once Chuck finished his shower he got dressed in some comfortable jeans and one of his favorite T-shirts, the one with the floppy disk on the front marked 'My Life' in scribbles on the label. He headed out to the kitchen where he heard Morgan groggily getting the coffee going while he fixed up their usual saturday breakfast. Ham, cheese and tomato omelets.

"Hey buddy, smells great!"

Morgan yawned really large but couldn't fail to notice Chuck was already up, showered and dressed. "Wow Chuckster, up early I see. What's the dealeo?"

"Nothing, just felt like going for a run on this beautiful morning."

Morgan looked outside and saw it was gray, probably about 55 degrees with a chance of rain of about 98%. "Chuck I don't know what the weather's like in the universe you're visiting us from but here in ours it looks like typical northern Cali gray."

"Well its still a beautiful morning. Perfect weather for a run."

Morgan finally was awake enough to catch on to what was causing Chuck's great mood. "So date go well last night? Details man!"

Chuck smiled and leaned back against the counter while he sipped the coffee he had just poured for himself. "Yea, you could say that."

"Come on Chuck you got to give me more than that. You went out with Vicki Vale last night and that's all I get? Where is the love man?"

Chuck laughed and just as he was about to answer his bearded roommate his phone rang.

"I bet I know who that is. Tell Ellie hello for me."

Chuck picked up his phone and answered. "Yes, Ellie I know I promised to call you this morning. And before you go all interrogation spy on me, yes the date was amazing."

_"Really? Did she like the flowers? How did she like the outfit? Were you a gentleman? Does she like you? Do you like her?"_

"Yes, yes, yes, yes. did I leave one out? Oh yea and 'yes'".

_"Very funny. I'm your big sister and I can still beat the crap out of you."_

"I have no doubt about that. But seriously, it was probably the best date I've ever been on." Ellie could hear the sound of happiness in Chuck's voice. He had finally moved on from that bitch Jill and seems like he really likes this Sarah.

_"Chuck, I don't need all the details but I'm just so glad to hear my old happy go lucky little brother is back. I've missed that guy for too long now. So are you going to see her again?"_

"I think so. At dinner she said next time was on her so..."

_"She wants to pay next time? Like go dutch? Like just friends?" _Ellie tried to hide her disappointment.

"No, no, nothing like that. She just felt the dinner was too expensive and when I wouldn't let her pay seeing I asked her out she said next time it was her turn."

_"So are you sure its not her wanting to be just friends?"_

"Well after our kiss in the gazebo under the moonlight I think I can be pretty sure she doesn't want to be 'just friends'." Chuck grinned and even though Ellie couldn't see it she knew it was there.

_"You kissed her in a Gazebo under the moonlight? Really Chuck? Wow that sounds incredibly romantic. Maybe Devon should take some lessons on how to treat a woman on a date from you little brother. So is she a good kisser? Wait, don't answer that. I really don't want to know any details about my brother's kisses."_

Chuck couldn't help laughing at his sister's embarrassment. He really didn't want to talk about kissing techniques with his sister either. "Let's just say I really hope I get to kiss her again."

_"Sounds like you might get that chance, little brother."_

"Hope so."

_"So did you give her the follow up call yet?"_

"No, not yet. I thought about it but didn't want to come off too creepy."

_"Chuck, from what you have told me this Sarah likes you. You take her on an incredibly romantic date and kiss her in the moonlight in a Gazebo. I don't think there is any chance she is going to think you are creepy. In fact I bet she is sitting in her room hoping you will call her."_

"I don't know. Maybe I'll text her, how about that?"

_"Fine, but don't wait too long. I have to get to the hospital soon anyway so text her after I hang up, Chuck. I'm a girl. I know what girl's like remember?"_

"How could I forget. Ok I'll text her."

_"Chuck, I'm really happy you had a good time last night with Sarah. I haven't heard your voice sound so strong, confident and content since before... well in a long time ok? I have a good feeling about this Chuck. I can't wait to meet her when Devon and I come up for graduation."_

"Thanks sis. Tell the Captain, Morgan and I said hi. Also tell him I'm sorry for getting him in trouble in the romantic department."

Ellie laughed. Her live in companion was going to hear an earful when he got home tonight. _"Ok bye Chuck. Remember to text Sarah. Love you"_

"Love you too Ellie. I'll remember I promise. Goodbye"

Chuck turned around and saw his roommate standing there having watched his entire conversation with his sister. Morgan was like a brother to Chuck and he loved the bearded one but boundaries of any kind was a concept Morgan was totally unfamiliar with his whole life. Chuck had learned that again the hard way when Morgan ignored the tie around the doorknob to Chuck's room at the fraternity house and walked in on him and Jill. His ears were ringing for a week after the scream Jill let out when she saw Morgan staring at the naked couple. Morgan had then been told in no uncertain terms what a tie wrapped around a doorknob meant.

"So you kissed Sarah at the Gazebo, huh? Nice work, buddy." Morgan walked over and gave his roommate a high five.

"Yea and that is all I'm going to tell you so don't ask. Besides don't you have a breakfast to cook?"

"Oh shit. Thanks Chuck." With that Morgan's attention went back to the stove and Chuck headed off to his bedroom to think about what to text Sarah.

**Apr 23, 2003**

**11:12 PM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

Chuck and Sarah had spoken to each other every day since Chuck's text saturday morning. The couple who had found each other because of the sound of their voices could spend hours talking on the phone. Nothing made them feel happier than hearing the other talk about something or nothing at all. Monday they had talked till nearly 2am before both finally headed off to sleep.

Wednesday night they had decided to get together for pizza and some movies at Sarah's place. Chuck, ever the considerate gentleman, had asked Sarah how she liked her pizza and he of course showed up with her favorite, vegetarian with no olives. Chuck had brought three of his favorites movies for them to choose from. ET for him. The Princess Bride for Sarah and The Shawshank Redemption. When Sarah saw he had brought Shawshank she immediately wanted to watch it. It was one of her all time favorites. After having their pizza and a couple of beers, they sat comfortably on the couch to watch the movie. By the time Andy Dufresne walked into the bank to close his accounts before heading to Mexico, Sarah was snuggled into Chuck's shoulder. It felt warm, safe and somewhere she wanted to be every evening when she watched TV.

When the movie was nearly over Chuck saw Sarah yawn even though she tried to hide it. As he looked over at the blonde hair that was now hanging across his shoulder and lightly laying over his chest he couldn't help but think about how lucky he was. He must have done something really incredible in a past life like diffuse a bomb in some nerdy way saving hundreds of people, or take down some rogue organization trying to take over the world. Nothing else could explain how fate had blessed him when Sarah tuned her radio to his show and decided to call in and change his life.

Sure he knew this was all really soon and he had only been on one real date with Sarah, well now two if you count tonight, but because of their weeks of talking on the phone during his show he felt like they had known each other for years. Like they were always supposed to know each other but simply hadn't met till that first night. They had both basically admitted they felt something right from the start and now he was sitting with Sarah leaning against his shoulder and it was one of the best moments of his life.

Chuck shifted a bit as he noticed Sarah's eyes drooping. As the credits rolled he decided it was time to head home. "Sarah?"

"Yea, Chuck?" The blonde picked herself off Chuck's shoulder and turned to look at those captivating eyes of his.

"I think I should go, I'm getting a little tired and I can see you obviously are. When Red was walking up the beach towards Andy I thought I heard you snore a bit." Chuck teased with a big smirk on his face.

Sarah reached over and slapped him on the arm. "I do not snore!" She said indignantly but failing to completely hide her laughter.

"Maybe I should ask Carina that question as I think she'd give me a different answer."

_'Maybe you will get to find out for yourself real soon, Chuck' _Sarah thought to herself. "Well lucky for me she still isn't home yet."

"I think it's time anyway. Thanks for a fun evening Sarah." Sarah stood up and walked over to her new boyfriend. She liked the sound of that and she hoped he thought of her as his girlfriend. She stood up on her toes and kissed him lightly on the lips. "I had a good time too, Chuck. And thanks for getting the pizza the way I like it."

"But of course, that piece of info has already been filed in my Sarah Walker folder for future reference along with Gardenias and Tim Robbins." As Chuck spoke he tapped on the side of his head. Sarah giggled at his nerdiness. It was one of the adorable things about Chuck she was falling for.

"He is cute but it's a great movie. I wasn't just watching it for him I'll have you know." She gave him another quick peck on the lips. "Besides, I bet you're a better kisser than him anyway." Chuck's face began to turn an adorable shade of scarlet.

"You think so?" She nodded and Chuck leaned in and proved it to her with a deep, tender, passionate kiss that made her toes curl.

"Definitely much better!" After one more peck they turned and headed towards the door after collecting Chuck's DVD's. "I guess I'm going to have to start one on you then. Likes music, very handsome, big nerd, and a great kisser."

"Not a bad start if I do say so myself."

As they got to the door Chuck turned towards Sarah and pulled her close. "So we still on for saturday? I mean I know hanging around a bunch of frat guys probably isn't your thing but it could be fun and I may not see these guys again."

"It's fine Chuck. I'm looking forward to spending saturday with you and meeting some of your friends."

"Great. Besides if it stinks we can go someplace else. There's a lot of stuff going on this weekend on campus. Morgan spent half his newscast sunday night on all the events to choose from."

"So you'll pick me up or do you just want to meet there?"

"Well I can park in any of the campus lots on saturday with my off campus parking pass so I'll pick you up here at say noon and we'll head over. The games don't start till one so we'll have plenty of time."

"Great, call me tomorrow?"

"You know it. I've got a big paper due so I'll be home and I'll need a break."

"Me too. Thanks for coming over."

"My pleasure believe me." Chuck flashed her his dazzling smile and kissed Sarah once more almost like he was caressing her lips with his.

"Mhhhmmmmm." Sarah said with her eyes still closed as he pulled away.

"Goodnight, Sarah."

"Talk to you tomorrow Chuck."

After Sarah closed the door she turned and leaned her back against it. "Definitely better than Tim Robbins."

As Chuck was coming out of the door to Sarah's building he saw a certain redhead with a big smile on her face walking towards him from the parking lot. "Hey Carina."

"Hi, Chuck. Leaving already?"

"Sarah was tired and I've got to get up early tomorrow anyway so we thought we'd call it a night." Chuck's happy demeanor easily readable even in the dim light of the streetlamps.

"So, you and Sarah have fun?"

"Yea, nothing special had pizza, watched a movie. But it was nice."

"Chuck, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure Carina, what is it?"

"Do you like Sarah, I mean really like her?"

"Are you kidding? She's amazing. I still can't believe she wants to spend time with me. Of course I like her. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I'm kind of protective of Sarah and I don't want to see her get hurt is all."

"Carina, I would never hurt Sarah, never. I know we just started dating but she means a great deal to me. I could never do that to her."

"Good. I didn't think you were that type but lord knows there are enough of them out there. I probably shouldn't be telling you this but Sarah really doesn't have too much experience with guys. Her last boyfriend really did a number on her. He broke a date saying he was sick and when she went over the next day to bring him some soup and hopefully make him feel better she walked in on him and some skank brunette going at it in the shower. She really liked this guy and it messed her up for a long time."

Chuck was stunned. How could any guy do that to anyone but especially to someone as special as Sarah was.

"Sarah was a bit of a nerdy ugly duckling in high school. But when I met her at orientation I could see how beautiful she could be with just a little polish. She finally got her braces off during the summer and began taking working out more seriously, running on campus and stuff. She really blossomed on the outside but she was still the nerdy girl everyone picked on, on the inside. Well then this guy sees her in the student union. He was very handsome, popular, a real jock and was one of the first guys to really notice her after her transformation. Well he charmed her into going out with him. They were together for about six months when she walks in on him and that skank. She hasn't really dated much since then and kind of became a bit of a loner.

"I tried to get her to go out and she did occasionally but Chuck, I've never seen her as happy as she's been these last few weeks since she first heard you on the radio. It's kind of why I kind of found myself over at the engineering building that day."

"What? You mean..."

"Yea, I kind of was checking you out to see if you were for real or someone who might take advantage of my roommate again."

"So I guess I passed?"

"With flying colors, Chuck." Carina stepped a bit closer and placed her hand on Chuck's arm. "Chuck, you seem like a really nice guy. I just don't want to see Sarah get hurt again. School's almost over and adulthood beckons. I just don't want to see her spend her last few weeks of college crying in her room like she did before."

Chuck took a deep breath and tried to calm his racing heart. The thought of anyone making Sarah cry tore him up inside. "Carina, I care about Sarah. I really do. I'd never do anything like that. You know better than I but already I can tell just how special Sarah is. I would never do anything to hurt her and I would go after anyone that did."

Carina smiled, leaned in and kissed Chuck on the cheek. "I believe you would Chuck. And by the way, you're pretty special too."

"Really? You think so?"

"If I didn't Sarah and I never would have 'accidentally' run into you and Morgan at the Arts festival that day." Carina winked her devilish wink as only she could.

"So you're telling me you planned that meeting?"

"A girl never tells her secrets Chuck. You should know that by now." She said walking away swaying her hips.

"Well thanks, I mean... yea thanks Carina" Chuck then flashed one of his trademark smiles that were brighter than the streetlamps they were standing below.

As Carina was opening the door she turned back towards Chuck. "Chuck? Remember what I said. You hurt her, I hurt you. Ok?"

"Duly noted. I wouldn't have it any other way. Goodnight Carina."

"Goodnight, Chuck"

As Carina stepped into the lobby of her building, she smiled once again. Chuck really was special and she knew he was telling the truth. He would never consciously hurt Sarah and would do whatever he could to defend her if someone ever did. They may not have been going out for long but it was clear to her that Chuck was falling just as hard for Sarah as she was for him.

**Apr 26, 2003**

**12:45 PM**

**Fraternity Row**

**Stanford University**

Chuck and Sarah were walking up the sidewalk past a row of Victorian style homes that housed many of the fraternities and sororities on campus. Saturday was the last big weekend before finals would begin and there were many big competitions planned between the fraternities and sororities. Flag football, four square, tug of war etc. Each team vying for the trophy given out each year to be displayed at the house during the year and it allowed the house bragging rights during rush week in the fall.

Gamma Delta Phi, Chuck's fraternity had won two years ago but it was mainly on the efforts of Chuck's old roommate and former best friend, Bryce Larkin. Chuck was never a great athlete but his height had helped them win the basketball section of the competition that year.

After what happened with Jill and Chuck's fallout with Bryce, he really wasn't looking forward to seeing the dirtbag but he would act like an adult if he did. Besides there were some guys he wanted to see and he had heard that Butch Landers might be showing up and he would like to see him and find out how he was doing working at JPL. A lot of the alumni and former brothers would show up if they lived in the area. Afterall what former frat guy could resist the call of the Beer Olympics.

As they approached the house Chuck asked. "Sarah do you want something to eat? The guys should have the grill going by now. We could get some burgers."

"Sounds great."

"Chuck!" He head his name screamed as they walked up the driveway towards the porch where many of the guys were standing, red solo cups in hand of course.

"Hey Jack. What's up?" Chuck walked up the steps and onto the porch.

"Not much buddy, glad you could make it."

Chuck felt the slight apprehension and shyness as Sarah stepped up the stairs and stood next to Chuck. Even this early in their relationship they were starting to instinctively pick up on how the other was feeling.

"Guys, this is ..."

"Hi, I'm Sarah, Chuck's girlfriend." Sarah said with a huge smile to Chuck's friends. Chuck looked at Sarah and their eyes met. _'Girlfriend, I could get used to that.' _Chuck thought.

"Sarah, this is Jack, Fred, Mike S, Mike B and standing over there trying to look all professional is our former resident brainiac, Butch. You see Butch graduated last year and moved on to work at JPL. But he still likes to come slumming with us common folk nerds."

Butch walked over and pulled Chuck into a big hug. "Chuck! Great to see you man. I was going to ask you how you were doing but from what I can see you are doing a hell of a lot better than any of these dorks. Hi I'm Butch, nice to meet you Sarah." Butch gave Sarah a big friendly smile and reached out his hand for Sarah to shake.

"Nice to meet you too Butch" Sarah took his offered hand and gave it a friendly shake in return. "So you work at JPL? That must be exciting."

"Yea, it's been a life long dream for a nerd like me. I'm just part time now because I've decided to go back to grad school but they are helping with paying for my classes so its all good."

Butch then turned to Chuck. "So Bartowski, you still working at the radio station?"

"Yea, Yea definitely. As a matter of fact that's kind of how I met Sarah." Chuck turned and looked at his new girlfriend, he really liked the sound of that, and caught her possible embarrassment about how they met. She didn't want Chuck's friends to think she was some kind of a stalker.

"It seems we have a common interest in Jazz and we met at the arts festival Morgan and I did a remote at."

Chuck turned back to Sarah and saw the thanks in her eyes. His smile was calm, comforting and confident_. 'That was perfect. It was the truth but he was protecting me at the same time. And that smile...' _Sarah's heart was filling with even more appreciation for this great guy she was with.

Butch watching the looks between Chuck and Sarah clearly saw that these two had it bad for each other. He had heard about Jill and Chuck had always been one of his best friends in the house. It was great to see Chuck so happy and when he looked at Sarah she was obviously just as hooked as Chuck.

"That's great Chuck. I think I miss working at the station more than anything else about graduating. We had some great times there buddy and got to listen to some great music we never had access to."

"You got that right. By the way, thanks for sending me that Mahavishnu Orchestra CD. I'm going to do a special segment on the origins of Jazz/Rock fusion tomorrow night and the copy the station has is scratched and skips in the CD player."

"No problem man. Glad to help. Meeting of The Spirits is one of my all time favorite pieces. John McLaughlin is one amazing guitar player. No wonder Miles had him work with him on Bitches Brew. I just wish I could pick up the station where I live."

Chuck turned to Sarah and realized she might feel left out. "I'm sorry Sarah. I didn't mean to bore you with all this radio station talk. It's just Butch and I..."

"It's ok Chuck. I'm not bored at all. Its nice to see you talk about something you are so passionate about. Maybe you can play it for me sometime?"

"Sure, anytime. It's really great if you like that kind of stuff."

"So Sarah, do you like music? Play an instrument?" Butch asked trying to engage Sarah into the friendly conversation.

"Well I don't know that much about it but I like a lot of stuff. Chuck's been kind of helping me with my education in Jazz. Oh, I did play violin in the high school orchestra if that counts."

"Of course it counts. I bet you were great." Butch said with a smile.

"Ahh no, but thank you."

"Hey Sarah that's perfect. I can use that on sunday. Jerry Goodman played the violin in the Mahavishnu Orchestra. It's not really a common instrument in Jazz or Rock but he was amazing."

"So you guys want something to eat? Burger? Beer?"

"Right, right. I'm so sorry Sarah all this talk and where are my manners. Can I get you something?"

"Thanks. I'll take a cheeseburger and a beer if you don't mind."

"Chuck, the keg's in the usual spot. I'll go get you and Sarah a couple of cheeseburgers. How do you like yours Sarah?"

"Medium rare with extra pickles if you have them."

"I'm sure we do. One medium rare extra pickle cheeseburger for the lovely lady and I know how this nerd likes his, medium well and smothered in ketchup."

"Hey you don't fool with greatness, my friend." as Butch walked away Chuck pointed towards his temple and whispered "one more thing for the box".

Sarah smiled and took Chuck's hand as they walked over towards the keg. The feeling sent waves of warmth between them.

Once Butch came back with the burgers. The friends stood and talked while they ate their lunch. After about fifteen minutes they were finished and Butch took all of their trash and threw it in the barrels. The conversation continued as Sarah watched her new boyfriend with a new appreciation for the comfortable affection Chuck's friends seemed to have for him. She wasn't the only person who saw how special he was once you got to know him.

As Sarah stood next to Chuck drinking her beer her attention turned to a silver Mazda Miata pulling in the driveway. It parked off by itself. She noticed that the driver had pulled across two spaces like the owner didn't want anyone parking next to it. She was still holding Chuck's hand when her stomach flipped as she saw who the driver was.

Chuck's attention was drawn away from talking to Butch as he felt Sarah begin to really squeeze his hand tightly enough that it began to hurt. He looked at Sarah and saw the anxiety in her eyes. "Sarah what's wrong?"

"Chuck, can we go inside please." Her apprehension very clear in her voice.

"Of course Sarah are you ok?"

"Chuck I just want to go inside now, please." She looked at him and he saw, fear, anxiety, pleading, but most of all hurt in her beautiful eyes. It was something he had never seen before from Sarah and his protective mode was pulling into high gear. Something was wrong with Sarah and he didn't know why.

He quickly turned and put his arm around Sarah just as they were about to reach for the door, Chuck heard a voice he knew all too well call his name.

"Chuck, is that you?"

"Chuck please!" Sarah whispered. Her voice shaking this time. Ignoring the voice behind him, as Chuck reached for the handle and began to open the door he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Come on Chuck don't be like that to your old roomie."

Sarah's heart was racing_. 'How does Chuck know Bryce? Did he just call him roomie? Was Bryce Chuck's roommate?' _She pulled on Chuck's hand but Chuck didn't move. "Just a sec." He said calmly. Chuck let go of Sarah's hand and turned slowly towards his old roommate.

"Hello Bryce." Chuck's voice was cold and distant. Sarah heard it immediately and her heart was beating a mile a minute. _'Chuck knows Bryce. This can not be happening.'_ She still hadn't turned around. Her feet frozen in place.

"It's been a long time Chuck. It's great to see you." Bryce extended his hand towards Chuck.

Chuck looked at Bryce and then at the extended hand and reluctantly took it and gave it a rather token shake. "I wish I could say the same."

"Hey look buddy. Can't we just forget about what happened for a little while Chuck. I mean graduation is in a month and who knows when or if we'll see each other again. We had some good times you and me."

"Operative word is 'had', Bryce."

"Chuck, I said I was sorry. Things just happened."

"Fine, let's just forget it." Chuck then turned and took Sarah's hand again and headed toward the door. She had her back towards Bryce the entire time.

"Chuck aren't you going to introduce me to your lady friend?" Larkin spoke with his usual, cocky, arrogant, charm on full display.

Sarah took a deep breath before she turned around to look at the man who betrayed her.

"Bryce, this is..."

"Sarah? Is that you?"

"Hello Bryce." Sarah's hand was back to squeezing Chuck's to the point he thought she might break his fingers.

Noticing the recognition between them he asked. "You two know each other?"

"Oh yea. Sarah and I go way back. Right Sarah?" Sarah so badly wanted to smack the cocky smirk off Bryce's face.

"Yes, Chuck. Bryce and I knew each other a couple of years ago." She didn't want to lie but she didn't want to talk about what happened between her and Bryce either.

"Come on Sarah we did a lot more than..." Just as Bryce was about to continue another person had finally stepped out of the Miata and was walking up the steps to the porch.

Chuck eyes caught the other source of so much pain and betrayal in his life step forward and stand next to the first. Fortunately his diverted attention had not caught on to what Bryce was about to say.

"Hi Chuck. Been a while."

"Hi Jill. This really is my lucky day." Sarcasm lacing through his voice. He muttered the last part mainly to himself but Sarah heard it.

"So Chuck, who's this?" The brunette looked at the blonde with a certain disdain.

Bryce spoke first. "Jill, this is Sarah. You remember the girl I told you about. The one I dated a couple of years ago before I met you and Chuck."

Chuck's jaw dropped. He quickly tried to hide it but Bryce and Sarah both caught it. _Sarah dated Bryce? Was he the guy Carina was talking about? It certainly fit his style or lack there of. _Chuck thought.

"So I guess you di.." Chuck then interrupted Bryce before he could throw a jab at Sarah for not telling Chuck about him.

"Jill, actually this is MY girlfriend, Sarah. The most amazing woman I've ever met."

Turning to Sarah, Chuck continues. "Sarah this is Jill, my somewhat less than amazing EX-girlfriend."

Butch who was standing a few feet away saw the tension level skyrocketing and knew he needed to step in before this real 'meeting of the spirits' turned ugly. Butch never cared much for Bryce. He was friendly towards him mainly because he was Chuck's friend but he never really liked him. When he heard about what happened with Jill and Bryce, he wasn't surprised. Bryce Larkin was always concerned first and foremost with Bryce Larkin and what could benefit him. Things like the 'bro code' were to be honored only until they got in the way of what Bryce wanted.

Butch knew that Chuck was not one prone to violent behavior but it was clear to him that Chuck would always put others first and would do anything in his power to defend someone he obviously cared about like Sarah.

"Ok guys, let's keep the testosterone levels to a minimum here. No unnecessary plumage displays if you don't mind." Butch stepped in between Chuck and Bryce trying to diffuse the situation. "Let's keep things cool. Chuck, why don't you take Sarah inside for a bit and show her the house, ok?" Turning his attention to Bryce he continued. "Larkin, you can move that imitation sports car of yours over where it belongs. We've got lots of people coming by and need all the room we can get. Don't be a prick and take up two spaces for that little toy of yours. I mean its not like your driving a Porsche anyway."

Bryce glared at Butch but seeing the look on the faces of some of the other frat brothers who were watching closely, he backed down. Moving the car was probably for best.

"Jill, why don't you stay here with me and I'll get you a beer." Butch looked around at all of the people standing and saw a mixture of emotions. Chuck was angry. Sarah was embarrassed and definitely on edge. Bryce was his usual cocky self and Jill was just bored.

Chuck reached out and took Sarah's hand and spoke to Butch. "Thanks Butch, I think that's a great idea. I want to show her the vintage color organ you and I modified in the party dungeon." As Chuck and Sarah walked away, Chuck's eyes never left Bryce until his back was to him. Once inside he pulled Sarah in close and put his arm around her shoulder. He took her downstairs to the basement and into a room that was decorated with four large white plexiglass panels on one wall. Around the room were four couches in various states of disrepair. Directly in front of the plexiglass panels was an area that looked like a dance floor. On the walls next to the panels were mounted two Klipsch speakers that were fed from an entertainment center mounted in what looked like an old china cabinet with glass doors covering an array of audio equipment. In the opposite corner was a large sixty inch Mitsubishi projection TV. The exposed walls were painted flat black with what looked like some ancient day-glo artwork from the sixties bleeding through. What was at one time probably a black light fixture hung from the ceiling in front of each old painting. In the final corner was of course a bar with a beer tap and full size refrigerator.

Chuck led Sarah over to the cleanest of the couches and sat himself down in the corner and pulled her down next to him with a gentle tug. She quickly snuggled into his shoulder and Chuck could see the tears she was gallantly trying to hide welling up in her eyes. They sat there for a few minutes in silence before Chuck realized Sarah had calmed down enough to speak. He knew that Bryce had to be the one Carina was telling him about the other evening and the irony of the fact that they both were betrayed by Larkin did not go unnoticed.

"It's ok Sarah. You can talk to me if you want to. I'm a pretty good listener."

Sarah wiped the remaining bits of moisture from her eyes and turned towards Chuck. She placed her palms gently on his cheeks and leaned in for a brief tender kiss. "I'm so sorry Chuck. I didn't want…"

Chuck quickly interrupted. "Sarah, you have nothing to be sorry about."

"Yes I do, I ruined your day with your fraternity brothers and caused a big scene where you might get into a fight. I'm sorry, really sorry about that."

Chuck took her hands and held them tenderly. "Sarah, you didn't ruin anything. If anyone is the cause of that, its Bryce and my cheating ex-girlfriend showing up when they did."

"But still I'm sorry I acted the way I did. I had no idea you knew Bryce. If I knew he might be here I never would have come."

"Sarah, can I ask you something?"

"Of course Chuck, you can ask me anything."

"Look, please don't be mad at Carina but when I left your place Wednesday night I saw her outside."

Sarah took a breath as she wondered what her best friend had told him. "What did she say?"

"Well first she asked me if I like you, which I do very much by the way." Sarah smiled at that. The tracks of her tears still evident on her cheeks. "Then she said in no uncertain terms that if I ever hurt you she would hunt me down and well let's just say much pain would be involved." Chuck smiled and Sarah chuckled. That was so like protective Carina.

"So under threat of death, of course I told her I would never ever do that because you already mean too much to me to ever hurt you." Sarah's tears started to come back but this time they were happy ones.

"You mean a lot to me too, Chuck. More than you know."

Chuck blushed just a little then kissed her gently. Chuck then shifted in his seat a little closer to his girlfriend.

"Sarah, Carina told me a little about what your ex-boyfriend had done and how much he hurt you. I assume from your reaction today she was talking about Bryce."

Sarah looked down at their clenched hands and just nodded.

"Look Sarah, Bryce betrayed you. You have nothing to feel sorry about. He has a history of that, believe me I know first hand what he is capable of."

Sarah looked up at Chuck again. "Wait…. What did he…How do you know that?" Her eyes were inquisitive but not judgmental.

"It doesn't matter now. I'm long over it. But trust me he will never hurt you again. I promise."

"Thank you, Chuck. I can't believe how lucky I am to have met you."

"No Sarah, I'm the lucky one here."

"Ok how about we're both lucky?"

"I can most definitely agree to that." The young couple then hugged reveling in the feeling they both shared. After a few moments they pulled back and they both smiled those special smiles that melted each other's hearts.

"So, you said you brought me down here to show me some color organ thing you made. Was that for real or did you have some other more devious intentions Mr. Bartowski?" Sarah gave him a rather seductive look.

"Well as enticing as that may sound, actually I did want to show you it. Come here." They both got up and walked over to the entertainment center. Chuck opened the glass doors and pushed a few buttons and the sound system came to life. He also pressed a couple of buttons on a rather non-descript aluminum box with various band stickers on it. He searched the collection of CD's that were there and when he found the one he wanted he loaded it into the CD player.

Chuck picked up the remote and guided Sarah to the middle of what was probably the dance floor in front of the white plexiglas panels. "Ok stand here." He lightly grabbed her hips and turned her towards the panels on the wall. He pressed the play button on the remote and Peter Gabriel's Red Rain began to play. Once the music started the white plexiglass panels became alive with color. The intensity and shades of color reacted to the sounds of the music that played and cast the room in a wash of yellows, blues, reds. But it wasn't just simple primary colors it was a full rainbow of color that seemed to dance along with the music. The deep bass crashes of the song caused splashes of brown to change into magenta then amber as they washed down the panels. You could see various instruments cause color to travel from panel to panel and then erupt in a rainbow of many shades. It was almost like watching the choreographed finale of one of the great Fourth of July fireworks displays she had seen while visiting Boston one year.

"Wow Chuck, this is amazing!"

"Yea, what's pretty cool is that a lot of this was actually done back in the early seventies by some of the nerds back then. Butch and I just kind of updated it with some new LED lighting and some new chips that we programmed. The original only had 4 colors and frequency ranges. Now we have over 64 thousand possible colors."

As Sarah was listening to Chuck she could see the joy he had for this. He got to combine his love for music with his Engineering skills and make something really nerdy but really cool.

"Well it's beautiful." She stepped up onto her tiptoes and gave him a kiss on her cheek. "You are one amazing man, Mr Bartowski."

"Thanks, but Butch did most of the work. I just…" Sarah stopped his minimizing himself with a passionate kiss.

"Humble too." She teased as she broke the kiss.

"So you want to see the rest of the house or we could leave if you want to go someplace else."

"Chuck, this is your fraternity and I want to get to know all about you and your friends. Bryce is a jerk and I was a fool for letting seeing him get to me the way I did. I am on the arm on the most incredibly kind and sincere man I've ever known. Why would a dirtbag like Bryce bother me?"

"Thanks Sarah. Ready to go back upstairs?"

"Let's go" Chuck held out his arm and Sarah gladly jumped to put hers through his. The couple headed up to the living room.

"Chuck, is there a ladies room I can use?"

"Yes, go through the dining room and head for the back door. First door on your right. You want another beer?"

"Yea thanks. I'll see you on the porch."

After Sarah finished washing up, she wiped her hands and opened the door. She turned right and just as she was about to step back into the dining room, someone stepped right in front of her blocking her way.

"So Sarah, you and Chuck huh? Bit of a step down don't you think?"

**A/N2 I have to admit I sort of stole one of my favorite lines from one of my favorite authors on this site in this chapter. I always liked it a lot the first time I read it and it was grabbed out of admiration for the original author. Next, another chapter of LL&L then we will be back to the home stretch for this one. Hope you liked it.**


	7. After The Rain

**I'm sorry this has taken a bit to get out. This story though planned has always been written by feel. It's a story from the heart and with some real life work related things and other elements I simply needed to wait till I felt it. I'm pleased with the way it came out and I hope you are too.  
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**Thanks again for all the support and interest in this and LL&L. It really does touch my heart.  
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**Still don't own Chuck but if Schwedak want to give it to me I'll gladly take it.**

**Chapter 7**

**After The Rain**

**Apr 26, 2003**

**1:36 PM**

**Gamma Delta Phi Fraternity **

**Stanford University**

"So Sarah, you and Chuck huh? Bit of a step down don't you think?"

"Jill, if you don't mind I'd like to get by." Sarah rolled her eyes and tried to step around her and continue out towards the porch but the brunette simply stepped to the side blocking her way again. Sarah didn't want to dignify the question with an answer.

"What are you so embarrassed by clearly settling for second best that you don't even want to talk about it?"

"Look Jill, I don't l know you and I don't want any trouble. This is Chuck's fraternity and I'm a guest here so please get out of my way," The anger and frustration building inside the beautiful blonde. Not only was Jill insulting her but she was demeaning the most amazing man she had ever met.

"Figures."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Bryce said you were frigid. No wonder all you can get is a geek like Chuck."

"Nerd, the proper term is nerd. Besides didn't you go out with Chuck too so what does that make you?"

"Chuck was just a fallback guy. Someone to take me places until I found something better. It also makes me glad I'm with a guy like Bryce. Someone with money to give me the things I want and deserve. Someone who comes from a rich family with power and clout. All Bryce has to do is snap his fingers and he can have any job he wants. What does Chuck have? Nothing! His parents even left him. He lives with his freaking sister and her live in boyfriend, how pathetic is that?"

Sarah Walker was not a violent young woman but she so wanted to do a spinning heal kick and wipe that self-absorbed, smirk off the bitches face.

"Don't you mean a guy like Bryce who will cheat on you with whatever set of boobs he can get his hands on. A guy like Bryce who will lie to you every chance he gets so he can screw whoever catches his fancy this week. Yea I'd be glad too." The sarcasm was dripping from her voice.

"So what? You don't think I don't have fun when Bryce isn't around? My god he's hot and he's 22 why shouldn't he get all the action he wants? It's not like I'm gonna marry him, at least not yet anyway. And even then a little action on the side keeps things from getting boring."

Sarah looked at the woman before her and was just dumbfounded at her callousness and completely different view of the world. Carina seemed to enjoy casual sex with guys but at least Sarah felt that deep inside she was always looking for a relationship at some point in her life. She was honest with them and if she ever did find someone Sarah believed that Carina's carousing days would be over. But Jill just didn't seem to care either way.

"Then you deserve each other."

"Bryce also told me about you Sarah. You were such a cliché. Ugly duckling in high school. Looses the braces and gets a makeover coming to college. You were prime for someone like Bryce to come along and give you the attention you never got from guys before. You were actually naive enough to believe he cared about you. No wonder you were so messed up when you walked in on him in the shower."

Sarah's emotions were flowing through her like a tsunami. They were hurt mixed with a powerful rage. She clenched her fists fighting with all she had to not punch Jill in that overly reconstructed nose of hers.

"But now you dating nerdy little Chuck. I guess you two are made for each other. Too bad for you the most action his bed upstairs ever saw was when he walked in on me with Bryce."

SMACK!

So this _was_ the Jill Carina was talking about and she had screwed Bryce in Chuck's own bed. Bryce was a douchebag but Jill was even worse. Having sex with your boyfriend's roommate and best friend in his own bed was about as low as you can go.

Jill looked stunned. No one had ever done that to her. "Why you bitch!" she screamed. Just as Jill was about to jump and grab Sarah, the blonde stepped back into a defensive position that showed Jill that the woman in front of her knew how to defend herself.

"Bring it on, skank!"

Hearing the screaming from the porch outside, Bryce who had been talking to some of the other frat brothers came running in to find the two women glaring at each other. Sarah fierce and strong while Jill noticing that Bryce was coming changed her expression to one of fear giving Bryce the impression that Sarah had been the aggressor and Jill was terrified.

"Bryce thank god you're here. She just came at me for no reason and hit me." Jill jumped into Bryce's arms with her face just our of his line of vision she gave a devilish smile Sarah's way.

"Sarah what the hell! Are you so freaking jealous you have to hit my girlfriend? We broke up years ago because you couldn't handle seeing me with another woman, I guess things never change."

"Fuck you Bryce!" Sarah screamed. She never used that kind of language but she was damn well going to use it now.

Chuck who had been over at the grill getting Sarah and he some more food while Sarah had been in the bathroom heard that last line and came running in just in time to see Bryce grab Sarah by the arm just below the shoulder. "No fuck you Sarah!"

"Yea you bitch," added Jill safely standing behind Bryce now.

Chuck, seeing Bryce put his hands on Sarah ran up and grabbed Bryce by the shoulder turning him to his right and threw a quick right hand that the pretty boy never saw coming. It sent him crashing to the floor on his ass. "Don't you _ever_ lay a hand on her again or I swear..." Chuck said with a fire he had never known he could muster as he stood towering over the smaller man at his feet.

Bryce rubbing his jaw smiled that smug smile of his up at his former roommate. "Not a bad right hand Chuck. Never knew you had it in you. But I wouldn't want you to hurt it too bad. You're going to be needing that right hand as long as you keep going out with that frigid bitch."

"You asshole! Get up and let's go, you and me, right here, right now! How dare you talk about the most amazing woman in the world like that?" Chuck eyes were clenched into small slits full of fire and adrenalin. No one insulted the woman he lo..., his mind hitched a bit at that thought but his heart knew it was true. No one insulted on laid a hand on any woman as long as he was around let alone someone as incredible as Sarah.

Sarah seeing the scene in front of her developing was filled with so many emotions. Hatred for Bryce, contempt for Jill, fear that Chuck might get hurt but also pride that such an amazing man was defending her honor. If she was totally honest with herself she was also incredibly turned on by Chuck right now. But she knew she had to stop things before they got out of hand.

Stepping in front of him she grabbed his upper arms and tried to steal his attention away from the couple who had betrayed both of them and on to her. "Chuck, he's not worth it. Let's just go ok? Please Chuck! Thank you for defending me but they deserve each other."

"So all talk huh Chuck? Gonna let the blonde tell you what to do? You always were a wuss around women." Bryce said as he got back up standing. His and Chuck's eyes never breaking contact.

"Chuck, let's go." Sarah said, finally turning his gaze to Sarah who was trying to calmly get his attention.

Butch who had been watching from behind Chuck immediately stepped in front of both of the two former friends once again. "Actually, I think Bryce and Jill should leave. Larkin put his hand on a woman in anger and that crosses the line and will never be tolerated here. So he and the brunette go. Chuck and Sarah stay."

"What the? I'm a member..."

"Now Larkin!" Butch may be a space nerd working for JPL but he always commanded a presence when he was in a room. Just as Bryce started to protest some of the other brothers stepped up next to Butch and glared at the pretty boy.

"Fine, Jill let's go. Who wants to be at this lame party when they let in "guests" like those two."

"Hey, she hit me first...I ..." the redness still quite visible on Jill's cheek where Sarah had slapped her.

"Let's go, Jill." Bryce grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the front door. His and Chuck's eyes still never leaving the other.

As he finally reached the door he turned to pull the door open for Jill to head out first. But just as he was about to make his exit he turned back towards his former roommate and one time best friend.

"Hey Chuck, just remember when you move back in with your sister after graduation and Sarah tries to find her dead beat dad, that Jill and I will be enjoying our view of Central Park from our new apartment on the upper west side." With that Bryce gave Chuck and Sarah the cockiest grin either had ever seen, turned and headed out of the frat house and hopefully out of their lives forever.

"Sarah, I'm so sorry you saw me like that. You have to know that..."

Sarah placed her hands on both of Chuck's cheeks and caressed them. "Chuck, please you have nothing to feel sorry for. If anyone deserves an apology it's you, I am so ashamed of my behavior. I embarrassed you in front of your friends. I'm so sorry."

Chuck reached around her and pulled her into his protective arms. She leaned her head into his shoulder and began to sob quietly. Chuck looked up at his friends and fraternity brothers and they all got the message to leave the couple alone for a few minutes. Once he saw everyone had gone back out to the porch or upstairs to their rooms, Chuck moved his arms to around her shoulder and guided Sarah over to the futon in the bay window of the living room and they both sat down. Sarah's head never leaving Chuck's shoulder as her sobbing continued.

"It's ok Sarah. Tell me what happened." He gently caressed her back as he felt her breathing calm and the crying stop.

Sarah taking a deep breath pulled back and looked directly into Chuck's comforting eyes. What she saw there was warmth, caring and what an emotional part of her wanted so badly to be love.

"Chuck, when I came out of the bathroom, she just stepped right in front of me. I asked her to let me pass as I was your guest here and I didn't want to start any trouble and embarrass you."

"Sarah, you could never embarrass me." His eyes sincere and his smile so very comforting.

"Well she started insulting you and blaming me for what happened with Bryce and I was getting angrier and angrier. She is such a bitch."

"Believe me I know. I have no idea what I ever saw in her. She seemed different but it was all just an act I guess and she played me like a fiddle."

Sarah took Chuck's hands and looked down at the two and how well they fit with each other. As she looked at them she saw the redness and what may be the start of some noticeable bruising on his knuckles. She picked them up and tenderly kissed each and every one.

"Chuck she told me about what happened and where you found them,... together. That's when I lost it and smacked her across the face. I'm so sorry about that. I just... I mean ... what they did... how they treaded such an amazing man... I just couldn't take it anymore. I'm so sorry. I hope you can forgive me."

As Sarah picked her head up and looked up at Chuck's face, she had expected to see an expression of disappointment but instead he smiled that smile of his that made her heart melt. The one she knew she would be happy to see the rest of her life.

"It's ok Sarah. There's nothing to forgive. I'm actually kind of jealous I didn't get to see you do it. I bet you were one hot kick ass ninja girl defending your boyfriend's honor."

Sarah's heart raced when she heard those words. Not only was he not disappointed, he said he was her boyfriend. Chuck Bartowski was her boyfriend. She loved the sound of that.

She leaned in and kissed him tenderly on the lips. It wasn't a kiss of passion or promise like the one in the gazebo but it was one of thanks and appreciation.

When it was over she smiled at him and said. "Speaking of hot. When you punched Bryce to defend _my_ honor ahhh ... , damn Chuck. Wow."

Chuck's face turned a bright red as she beamed up at him.

"So ahhh you like it when..."

"I know you're kidding but don't you finish that sentence." Her expression turned a bit more serious. She took a deep breath and continued. "Chuck, no one has ever done anything like that for me before. It wasn't what you did but who did it that meant so much to me and was so damn hot. Thank you Chuck for protecting me."

"Well from what I saw when I walked it I don't think you needed much protection. You could have kicked both their asses."

Sarah chuckled and punched him on the shoulder. "See what I mean?" His grin growing wider.

"Seriously Chuck. _You_ defended _me. _That's more important than if I can defend myself physically or not."

"Well a gentleman always protects his girlfriend." His soft caring smile had her melting with affection and her smile grew even wider in return. The two looked at each other and they didn't need to speak anymore about it. They knew it was the truth and they both loved the sound of it.

"Chuck, I'm sorry about what they did to you. I just..."

"Sarah it's ok. It's in the past and that's where it will stay. Besides if they both hadn't been such jerks I might never have met you and that thought is so much more upsetting to me than anything those two did."

"To both of us, Chuck. I don't want to even think about having never met you."

"Yea. Well thank god we'll never have to." Chuck leaned down and kissed Sarah gently and tenderly.

"Shall we head back outside and get another beer or something else to eat? They guys were setting up the beer pong table before I came in."

"Sure, sounds like fun. Do you mind if I text Carina and tell her to come by? She wasn't doing anything today and the idea of free food, free beer and hot nerdy guys seemed to grab her attention."

"Hot nerdy guys grabbed her attention, huh?"

"Well all except one hot nerdy guy. He's off limits."

"Anyone I know?"

Sarah punched him in the shoulder again and smiled a glorious smile back at him.

"Owww. I'm really seeing a violent side to you today Sarah." He said with a tone that she knew he wasn't serious.

"Well when I'm defending my boyfriend I am." Now she had said it to him privately and not just as a way to introduce herself to Chuck's friends. That thought made her tingle inside.

"Wow, I've got a girlfriend." He said beaming.

"And I've got a boyfriend." Their smiles made all the more brighter by the light now glowing in their eyes.

"Shall we?"

"Yea, just let me send this text to Carina and we'll go."

Chuck stood up and extended his hand. Once Sarah hit send she reached out and took the object that gave her so much warmth and stood up. Their fingers intertwining as they headed towards the door. Just before Chuck was about to reach for the handle Sarah pulled him back, wrapped her arms around his neck, stepped up on her toes and kissed him.

"Thank you for being my boyfriend." She said, her appreciation of all that Chuck had done and meant to her clearly evident in her voice.

"My pleasure, believe me." He kissed her this time and they both knew this was becoming something so much more.

**Two hours later**

Chuck and Sarah were standing on the porch watching the semi finals of the Beer pong tournament. The young couple was set to play in the next semi-final against Butch and Jack. Sarah was a natural athlete and was deft at games involving eye hand coordination like darts and beer pong.

Sarah, looking over Chuck's shoulder noticed the attention of most of Chuck's frat brothers suddenly change from the competition to something or someone coming up the driveway. Judging by the simultaneous jaw dropping of the assembled male population, it could only mean one thing. Carina had arrived.

Dodging the flying ping pong ball that suddenly even the players in this round had no interest in catching the redhead sashayed her way up the steps to where a smiling Chuck and Sarah stood.

"Hey Chuckie. Nice to see you again." She leaned in and kissed him briefly on the cheek.

"Hey Carina, glad you could make it."

"Well I wasn't doing anything in particular after the gym this morning and blondie told me you guys were having a party so it sounded like fun. Hey Sarah."

"Hi Carina, I'm glad you came too." The two roommates hugged both fully aware that much of the rather loud conversation that had been going on had suddenly stopped when the redhead arrived. As Carina pulled back she winked at Sarah and turned her attention back to Chuck.

"Plus Sarah also told me you had some cute friends so I figured..." The sassy smile that Chuck has seen before that was classic Carina was fully on display.

Redfaced Chuck decided to change the subject. "Oh where are my manners. Carina, do you want a beer? burger? or something.

"I'll take a beer if you don't mind Chuck and maybe a cheeseburger if it isn't too much trouble. I'm starving."

"Coming right up. Sarah?"

"I'm good Chuck but I'll take a beer thanks."

"Be right back." Chuck gave Sarah's hand a tender squeeze before he turned and headed towards the grill where a couple of his buddies were cooking. As he told his friends who the burger was for they both nodded and smiled at the two beautiful girls standing on the porch.

"So Sarah, I see from the way you two are looking at each other things are good?"

"No, actually they are great." Sarah's deep blue eyes were full of a joy Carina had never seen in her best friend."

"Wow, from the look in your eyes I might say even that is an understatement."

"Carina, I have never felt like this before. Chuck is just... well he's unlike anyone I've ever met before. He's kind, caring and for the first time in a real long time I feel like someone is in my corner besides you of course." She said shyly but with a deep sincerity.

"Well I'm glad. You deserve it. I just want you to be happy." Carina turned to where Chuck was getting her cheeseburger and saw him looking at Sarah. The adoration he had for her was as obvious as the sun. "And from what I can see, he feels the same way." She nodded in Chuck's direction and Sarah turned to see how Chuck was looking at her and they both blushed. Carina looked back and forth between the two and she saw clearly how they felt about each other. Hell a blind man could see they both had it bad.

Chuck got the cheeseburger, placed it on a paper plate, picked up a napkin and headed over to the keg where Butch was standing talking to some of the other guys who still were sending glances over towards the two beautiful women.

"Chuck, dude what is up with you and the babes man? You are like a god to all the nerds throughout the world."

Chuck laughed but couldn't stop his face from turning red. "Chuck Bartowski, babe magnet! Who would have thunk it?"

"Thanks Butch. I have no clue how that happened, believe me."

"Well whatever you are doing man, don't change a thing because... well... Damn!"

"Hey grab a couple of beers for Sarah and me and I'll introduce you to Carina."

"Thanks, man!" The excitement in Butch's voice was as clear as an image from the repaired Hubble telescope. Butch was tall, not as tall as Chuck but still over six feet. He had short cropped hair and a warm smile. He was brilliant, friendly and pretty good looking for a nerd but he had always been shy around women, especially beautiful ones. But Sarah had made him feel comfortable and seeing how much she cared for Chuck was something he really enjoyed seeing. Chuck was a great guy and deserved someone as great as Sarah seemed to be.

"Here you go, Carina. One cheeseburger."

"Thanks Chuckie. So who's your friend?"

"Carina, this is Butch Landers a good friend of Chuck's. He worked with him at the radio station last year. Butch, this is my roommate, Carina Miller."

"Nice to meet you, Carina. Oh... here's the beer you wanted. This one's for you Sarah." He said with a slight hesitation. Carina and Sarah both found his obvious shyness cute.

"Thanks and it's a pleasure Butch. Nice to meet you too. You in Chuck's fraternity?" Carina gave him a genuine smile.

"Anhhh no... well... actually yes I was but I graduated last year."

"Carina, Butch works at JPL."

"Wow, cute _and_ smart."

"ahhh ...Thanks ... you're really ahhh oh geesh" Butch's face was now almost Stanford cardinal red.

The four new friends all looked at each other and started laughing. The nervous tension dropping away. When Chuck put his hand in front of his face, Carina noticed the redness and small bit of scabbing on his knuckles. Sarah had cleaned it up and he was fine but the telltale signs of his punch were evident.

"Chuck, what happened to your hand?"

"Ahhhh Nothing it's just a little red is all. It's nothing really." Chuck didn't want to make Sarah uncomfortable bringing up the scene from two hours ago.

"Nothing? Chuck man, it was far from nothing. It was amazing!"

"Butch, please."

"Chuck, come on your a hero man. Right Sarah?"

"Yes, Chuck is most definitely my hero." Sarah grabbed Chuck's arm and pulled him in close and kissed him on the cheek. All the pain and hurt that she had felt ever since she walked into that shower a few years ago was all gone away with one amazing punch.

Carina looking back and forth between the three finally had to ask. "Ok so Chuck's Sarah's hero, I get that but what does that have to do with Chuck's hand looking like he punched a wall?"

"Carina, it was better than a wall. He punched out Bryce Larkin! Dropped him like a stone!" Butch said with pride in his good friend.

Carina looked at Butch then Sarah who nodded smiling with affection and then at an embarrassed Chuck. Her mouth as wide as could be. She was stunned.

"Really Chuck? You punched out that jerk?"

Chuck looked down and nodded. "I sorry. I just..." Before he finished that thought Carina launched at the tall nerd and threw her arms around him and hugged him almost spilling her beer on Chuck's shirt. She kissed him on the cheek and hugged him again even more tightly. Sarah and Butch stood by watching the scene both grinning ear to ear. Chuck awkwardly had his arms around Carina's lower back and held her nervously. "What's... ahh what's all this about?"

Carina let go of her arms and stepped back smiling and a little embarrassed herself by the outburst. "It's just... just thank you Chuck. Really thank you. I wanted to do that every time I saw him on campus. He's a jerk and I hope you messed up that perfect pretty boy face of his. So how did it happen?"

"Carina I don't want to..." Chuck said looking over at Sarah. He didn't want to upset her.

Sarah looked at him lovingly and knew why he didn't want to say anything. His humble nature and concern for her feelings were two of the many reasons she was falling for him so hard. But she wanted Carina to know why Chuck was her hero. Turning back towards her roommate she decided to answer for him.

"Well Bryce showed up with his new girlfriend and she kind of said a few things about Chuck I didn't like so I slapped her."

"You what? Sarah I've never known you to have a badass side like that."

Chuck looked at her lovingly. A sense of pride came up within him. Sarah had been defending him too.

"Well she deserved it. But then Bryce came running in and he grabbed me."

"He what? That asshole!"

"It's ok Carina. That's when Chuck came in and he put Bryce on his ass." She turned and looked at Chuck still holding tightly on his arm.

"Yea, you should have seen him Carina. I know he was Chuck's friend and roommate but I never liked him. He was cocky and just a spoiled rich kid who always took what he wanted."

"Come on now Butch, Bryce wasn't all bad. We had some good times."

"Yea like him screwing your girlfriend in your very own bed." Butch gasped as he said that. He looked over at Sarah to see if he had in fact spilled the beans on something he shouldn't have. "Chuck, Sarah I'm sorry I shouldn't have said that."

Sarah reached over and placed her hand on Butch's forearm gently. "It's ok Butch. I know about it. But that's all in the past. Isn't it Chuck?"

"Yep, we are both in a much better present and hopefully on to a much better future." He said smiling brightly at Sarah as she nodded her affirmation.

"Wait, that was you? Jill was your ex-girlfriend?"

"Unfortunately yes Carina." Chuck said sadly.

"Wow, Sarah slaps that bitch Jill and Chuck decks that prick Larkin. Damn I wish I had seen that. I need to hang out with you nerds more often." Carina then turned and gave a bit of a seductive grin Butch's way. He gulped ever so slightly. Chuck and Sarah noticing the look on Carina's face and Butch's one of terror glanced at each other knowingly. Turnabout is most definitely fair play.

"Yes!" The four's attention suddenly turned towards the beer pong table. It seems the other semi-final game was over and the two Mikes had won. "Chuck, Butch you're up."

"OK I guess that's our cue." Chuck and Sarah headed towards the stairs to get ready for their match.

Butch turned and called over to Jack, his partner who was now on grill duty. "Jack we're up."

"Sorry man but I've got grill duty for the next hour."

"Aww man I guess that means you win Chuck."

Sarah seeing the opportunity to pay back her best friend for all she had done for her called over to Butch. "Hey Butch, why don't you ask Carina to play?

Butch looked at Sarah a little stunned but most of his shyness had gone during their chat about the "incident". He turned and looked at the redhead who was smiling patiently.

"Carina, would you mind.. ahhh do you want to be on my team?"

"Sure. I'd love to. Thanks Butch." Carina then looped her arm through Butch's and they walked down towards where the table had been set up. Butch kept glancing down at the arm of the gorgeous redhead wrapped around his. "I have a feeling we will be adding champion to cute and smart on the list of qualities you have Butch." She said flirtatiously. "We're gonna kick some nerd ass!"

The four friends played a best two out of three match and going into the final round it was tied one to one. Chuck and Butch kept looking at each other smiling. The competitiveness of Sarah and Carina was hysterical to watch. The trash talking between the two roommates was as harsh as anything Chuck had ever heard on the basketball court. All the guys could do was standby hoping they didn't embarrass their partners when it came to their turn, But as Chuck and Butch both were fraternity men they had spent more than their fair share time around a beer pong table.

It was Butch's turn in the final match with Chuck and Sarah having only one cup left and Sarah having sunk her last shot.

"Come on Butch, you can do this. Sink this shot and we redeem ourselves and send this game to overtime."

"Butch do you realize you have a beautiful redhead is your partner? She's gorgeous, smart, and a nerd like you must be shaking in his sneakers not to look like a geek and miss it. You'll have to hang your head in shame all the way back to Pasadena." Chuck said between laughter.

"Can it Chuck, my partner's got this." Carina glared back at him.

"Oh afraid of a little trash talk now Red? Remember I know where you live." Sarah replied. All of them having a great time.

"You can do it Butch just breathe deeply, let it out and let that ball fly."

Butch did exactly what Carina said. Once he exhaled he let the ball go. A perfect swish in the red solo cup!

"Yes!" Carina screamed and threw her arms around Butch hugging him and kissing him on the lips. "My hero! It's overtime Blondie!"

Just as the four friends were setting up for overtime all of a sudden that skies opened up with a huge crack of thunder and it began to pour. By the time they grabbed the table and all of their stuff they were soaked to the bone.

Once back on the porch they all started laughing, high fiving and smiling at the new friendships that had formed.

"Guys there really isn't enough room on the porch to set up the table and to be honest I have to go meet my old roommate to get the key to his apartment so I can move some of my stuff I left there after graduation because his lease is up. Tomorrow I have to head back to Pasedena. I've got to do some deep space network work for the Cassini mission. But I'll be bringing my dad's truck next weekend to get my stuff."

"So you're bagging out on us for a big gas bag that just happens to be wearing a ring?"

"Very funny Chuck. And Saturn is everybody's favorite planet. Right Sarah?"

"Ahh well I always did like big rings. But I'm kind of fond of Pluto."

"So are Mickey and Minnie" Sarah smacked Chuck on his arm and kissed him on the cheek.

"But no way am I going to disappoint my partner here. How about we pick this up next saturday? Carina I mean if your free though you probably have other plans..."

"It's ok Butch. No way am I letting blondie here and her nerdy boyfriend beat us. I'm there. " Carina smiled happily.

"Great. I'll look forward to it." Butch said smiling in return.

"You are really going to talk to a spacecraft orbiting around Saturn?"

"Yea, I work on the communications link between JPL and the Deep Space Network of dishes around the world."

"Wow, that is so cool."

"Thanks Carina. I'm really just a low level technician but I love it and when I finish my Ph.D I hope to get on to the New Horizon's mission team that's heading to Pluto. Maybe I can send you some pictures Sarah."

"I'd like that, Butch. Thanks.

"Damn, and here I always thought you gee.. nerds were boring, well until I met Chuck here." Carina looked over at Chuck and Sarah and winked. Chuck Bartowski had changed Carina's perception about nerds and seeing her best friend so happy it was an eye opening lesson on the men Carina was usually attracted to.

"Thanks guys. Great meeting you Carina." Butch extended his hand but Carina would have nothing of it. She put her arms around Butch, hugged him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. It wasn't as powerful as the one during the Beer Pong tournament but still was a pleasant surprise.

"Great meeting you too Butch. See you next weekend."

Butch then turned to the couple to his right. "Sarah, take care of my bud here. He is one great guy and there is no more loyal friend to have in your corner than Chuck Bartowski."

"Oh I know that Butch. I'm just lucky he's in mine. And I promise I'll take good care of him. Thanks for helping earlier."

"No problem. As I said, Chuck's a great guy and you seem like a great girl. I'm happy for you both." Butch stepped forward and gave Sarah a hug. Stepping back he turned towards the taller nerd who was smiling at his friend. "Chuck, always great to see you. You are one lucky nerd. Don't screw this up!"

"Ahh don't I know it. Thanks again man for everything. But we are going to kick your ass next weekend!"

"Empty threats Bartowski! There is no way I'm losing with Carina on my team. See ya guys." Butch gave Carina a big smile and waved to the others as he hustled down the stairs into the pouring rain to his car.

Sarah looked at her roommate who watched Butch leave just a little longer than she wanted them to see.

Sarah glanced briefly at Chuck and he got the message.

"So Carina, cute and smart nerds aren't boring?"

Carina's face had just a hint more pink than it did thirty seconds ago. "Hey what can I say you learn something new everyday." Carina walked up to Chuck and gave him an affectionate hug. As she pulled away Chuck gave her a quizzical look. Sarah knew why she had done it and smiled contentedly.

"What was that for?"

"For being there for Sarah. For defending her and for just being a great guy. Maybe you nerds aren't so bad and I've been hanging out with the wrong guys." There was a little more emotion in Carina's voice and none of her usual fun carefree attitude. She was thanking Chuck sincerely but there was more to what she said but Chuck knew to respect her and just let it be.

"I'll always be there for Sarah and for her friends too." Chuck then hugged Carina and she knew ne meant it.

Pulling away and letting her normal sassy self take over her face once again she quickly changed the subject. "Well my hair's a mess, my clothes are soaked and I've got some plans so I'm going to get going. Thanks Chuckie, I had a great time and Butch and I are going to beat your dorky asses next weekend, you can count on it."

"We'll have to see about that, Red. I know Butch's weakness and I'm sure Sarah knows yours. We've got a week to prepare for some badass trash talking."

"Hey Sarah you sure you want to keep dating this guy after I take him down and teach him some lessons next weekend?" Carina said in her best double entendre voice.

"First of all _you _are not teaching him anything. You'll have to find your own studentsto take down by yourself."

"Ok roomie I get it. Chuckie here's off limits. Don't get your panties in a bunch. Chuck might..."

"Carina!" At that moment Carina pulled her into a hug. As she did she whispered into Sarah's ear. "He really is pretty great, isn't he?" Sarah just nodded as she fought back a hint of moisture in her eyes. "I'm really happy for you Sarah."

"Thanks Carina. I'm a pretty lucky girl."

The roommates pulled apart and Carina leaned over and kissed Chuck on the cheek. "Bye guys. Thanks for inviting me." As she walked away she stopped and turned back towards the couple. "Chuck, if you talk to Butch before next weekend, tell him I said hi and it was great to meet him." Carina's face once again had the look she rarely showed anyone beyond Sarah. It was sincere and Chuck liked what he saw in the redhead's eyes, honesty.

"I promise, Carina. Thanks for coming."

"See ya tomorrow Blondie!" Carina winked at Sarah and she blushed at the message Carina was giving her.

After Carina had run off to her car, the couple turned to look at each other. Their eyes speaking volumes without either saying a word. Today was a day they would remember and they both knew it wasn't over yet.

"So beautiful, what do you want to do now?"

"Well handsome, I look a mess and this rain doesn't seem like it's going to let up anytime soon. How about we go get dried off and get some take out?"

"Love this plan. Morgan is visiting his mom back in LA for the weekend, why don't we grab something on the way and we can head to my place and you can see where I live this time?"

"Perfect."

"Ok, let's go say goodbye to the guys and we can head out."

Chuck extended his hand and the two said their thank yous to Chuck's friends and made a mad dash through the raindrops to Chuck's car.

**Apr 26, 2003**

**8:43 PM**

**Chuck and Morgan's apartment**

Once the couple had gotten back to Chuck's apartment they had ordered dinner to be delivered, Chuck had taken a quick shower so he could be ready when their meal arrived. Once he was dressed he let Sarah take a shower while he went waited in the living room. He had left her a pair of his sweatpants and one of his favorite T-shirts from the movie Spaceballs with "May the Schwartz be with you" on the front. When she came out of the shower and saw what he had left her, she laughed. _"Chuck, you really are a big nerd, aren't you?" _She thought to herself.

Looking around Chuck's bedroom she took in the surroundings. On the wall as you came in the door was a poster from the movie Tron. It seemed to have a special place across from his bed in the room so it must be important to him somehow. On the homemade shelves next to his desk she saw an assortment of video games, dvd's, CD's, LP's and comic books.

Sitting on the top shelf next to a vintage lava lamp were some pictures of Chuck with what she thought were probably friends and family. There was a shot of Chuck and Morgan at Comicon from the year before, a picture of a bunch of people dressed in what looked like uniforms of green polo shirts or short sleeve white shirts and gray ties. Chuck being the tallest was standing in the back and everyone was standing around him. They were standing in front of a store in a shopping center and from the look of the uniforms and the colors it must have been from when Chuck worked at the BuyMore. She could tell from just looking at the picture that they all seemed to gravitate to Chuck and he was the focus and probably their leader. Something about the man, his kind face, his amazing voice that had so captivated her those weeks ago and his genuine smile seemed to be a magnet to everyone that met him. Some folks may have seen his kind nature as a weakness and tried to take advantage of that like the two jerks today but if you really got to know him, he just made all those around him feel safe, cared for and want to be in his company. That same feeling she had could be seen in the co-workers in that picture.

But right in the center in what looked like a place of honor was a picture of Chuck with a brunette woman standing in front of a fountain. The big smiles on their faces and the similarities in their appearance made it certain that this was Chuck's sister, Ellie. The love between them was so obvious it made her heart swell when she saw it. That feeling of family was something she had always longed for. It didn't make her sad for herself seeing it in the picture but actually made her feel happy that Chuck had it in his life.

Hearing the door to the apartment open for what must have been the delivery man she heard Chuck call her name.

"I'm in here Chuck."

The lanky brunette with the curls set the food down on the counter and headed towards his room. As he came to the doorway he saw Sarah standing by the window holding a picture. The sight of Sarah in his room wearing just the casual clothes he had left her, hair that was still a bit damp took his breath away. She was just so beautiful and having her in his room, in his life was a blessing he had trouble believing he was worthy of.

"Hey."

"I hope you don't mind. I was looking at your room trying to get to know a bit more about my boyfriend." Both of their hearts raced a bit faster as she said that. Their smiles telling each other they loved the sound of it.

"That's my sister Ellie."

"She's a very beautiful woman Chuck. You must be so proud."

"Yea, Ellie is pretty great. I'm lucky to have her. She is really looking forward to meeting you Sarah."

"You've told her about me?"

"Of course I have. I'd tell the world about you if I could. Ellie has been the most important person in my life for a long time. Of course I'd want to tell her about the most important person in my life now."

Sarah put the picture back into it's place of honor, turned, walked over and put her arms around Chuck's shoulders kissing him tenderly. As she pulled away she paused a second before looking deeply into Chuck's glorious deep brown eyes. Eyes so full of what they both knew was love even though neither had said the words yet.

"You're the most important person in my life too." Chuck then pulled her into his warm protective embrace. As they stood there in each other's arms for what felt like seconds or hours or even days their heart beats synced up and pounded in exactly the same rhythm. They both knew this was where they were supposed to be.

After a few more moments Chuck pulled back and smiled at his beautiful girlfriend then kissed her on her forehead.

"Here, I have something I want you to hear." He took her hand and led her over to the bed. Sitting her down with her back against the headboard. The smile on his face was radiant as he had something very special to play for Sarah.

Chuck walked over to his collection of jazz CD's and pulled one out placing it in the CD player. He picked up the remote and walked over to the other side of the bed and sat down next to Sarah. She saw that the speakers were placed equally on either side of the shelf perfectly spaced facing the bed. This was where Chuck did much of his serious music listening. That thought made her smile that he was sharing something so personal with her.

"I think this song is appropriate after today."

"What's it called?"

"It's After the Rain by John Coltrane."

"Ahhh" she smiled. "I see your point."

"It's one of my absolute favorites and it has gotten me through a lot of rough times in my life. I'd like you to hear it then we can go have some food."

"Ok," Sarah leaned over and kissed him lightly. "I'm sure I will. Thank you for sharing such a personal part of you with me."

"I'd share anything with you Sarah. I trust you."

"Me too, Chuck."

They both leaned back against the headboard and Chuck reached out and pressed play on the remote.

As they sat there listening to Coltrane's incredible tenor sax and McCoy Tyner's melodic piano a peace fell over both of them. After all of the emotional highs and lows of the day, both of them being confronted with ghosts of their past and the possibilities of their future they found a serenity they both had been longing for.

Chuck looked at Sarah and smiled. He held out his arm and she gladly snuggled into Chuck's shoulder. She looked into his eyes and knew they were the eyes of someone who would never betray her, someone who would protect her, someone who would love her always. She had found the man she was supposed to be with and she couldn't be happier.

Chuck looked into the deep oceans of blue he saw before him and could see the other half of his soul. The other half of his heart. Someone who would honor him and someone who deserved to be honored. This was what home felt like and being here together in this moment, they both knew there was no place they would rather be.

As the song ended, Sarah looked at Chuck and said barely above a whisper. "Thank you, thank you for saving me."

Chuck gave her a soft smile and quietly replied. "Thank you for finding me."

They both slowly moved their lips till they were but a millimeter apart. Both feeling the peace and joy of being so close, the desire, the anticipation made all the more sweet by holding back from actually kissing for these few precious moments. As they lay there so desperately close with just a small fraction of space between them, the passion grew with each breath. Their hearts began to race and when they finally, simultaneously closed that last precious gap between them, the serenity and peace they both had been feeling merged into an all enveloping wave of pure joy and love.

As the couple continued to explore the heart. mind and soul of their partner through this blissful kiss, their hands began to explore the rest of their physical bodies. As tongues moved in each other's mouth sharing their building passion, no questions needed to be asked. No permission needed to be granted. They both knew where this was headed and they both wanted it desperately. In that moment Chuck and Sarah were becoming one both on an ethereal level and a physical level. Their minds and hearts blended into one desire, one passion, one love. As their hands continued to further explore each other, neither knew how their clothes had found their way to the floor. It was almost as if some force had simply removed them for them.

As the young couple began to make love, thoughts of the meal waiting on the kitchen counter vanished from their minds. Dinner would become breakfast and both couldn't be happier.

In a similar bedroom two months before, the sounds of beautiful jazz music and two incredibly captivating voices had taken them on a path that brought them here. It brought them to a place where they trusted each other enough to share their most intimate thoughts and feelings. To share the touch of their bodies and to share the unbinding love in their hearts.

The journey that began that night had brought them home.

**A/N2 Yea I know but I couldn't resist. I mean I've wanted to do a story where Chuck punches Bryce in his pretty boy face since I first started writing here. It was just too much fun to resist lol. Anyway we are coming to the end of this journey soon. Probably one more chapter and then an epilogue. I'll really miss this once it's done but I promise we will all get to say goodbye happily to these beloved characters. Thanks again for everything.**


	8. Someone to Watch Over Me

**A/N Thanks once again for all the incredible response you have given to my ramblings. I am humbled by it and thank each and every reader, reviewer and alerter.  
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**This story has been such a joy to write and I hope my love for these characters shows each time you read it. Thanks again.  
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**I don't own Chuck but damn would I love to.**

**Chapter 8**

**Someone To Watch Over Me**

**Apr 27, 2003**

**6:12 AM**

**Chuck's bedroom**

Sarah's eyes fluttered as she began to feel the bliss that was overtaking her. She had been awake for a few minutes but refused to open her eyes for fear that the magic of this moment would somehow be broken. Sarah had never felt so alive and so incredibly happy. As she lay there nuzzled into Chuck's chest she felt his soft curly chest hairs tickle her cheeks as he breathed contentedly. The soothing sounds of Chuck sleeping next to her were almost as captivating as his amazing voice. This she could get used to.

Finally opening her eyes she saw the glimmering rays of sunlight flickering through the blinds. They painted beautiful colors around the room as they reflected off of some of Chuck various collectables. The prism effect on the walls caused by the sun shining through some large quartz crystals on Chuck's desk arced like a rainbow pointing towards the pot of gold lying next to her.

Sarah had never felt this way in her life. She was lying naked next to the most amazing man she had ever known and she didn't want to move, she didn't want to break the spell. A small part of her worried she would wake up again and it would all be a dream. Last night she had made love with Chuck. It was, exciting, passionate, tender, glorious and perfect. Sarah didn't have many partners in her life, only three, but this was the first time she had ever made love. In many ways it was so much more than making love, it was the union of two spirits and Chuck had been such a caring lover. In her limited experience she had never known a man who seemed to care more about her pleasure and making her happy than about his own. Kyle the boy who took her virginity the summer after high school was also a virgin and let's just say it was a less than satisfying experience. And Bryce? Well Bryce was Bryce and that simply said it all.

But Chuck had been different. His every move, every kiss, every caress was all about her and expressing how he felt about her, about them. He cherished her and she never felt so special in her life. His actions yesterday and last night had proven that he was someone who would watch over her, someone who would protect her and not just on a physical level but an emotional one as well.

Sarah wanted so much to give herself to him, to show him how much he meant to her and how truly special he was. They were equal partners and she needed him to know how deeply she cared about him and how special he made her feel. She wanted to tell him how she felt but it seemed so much more natural and easy for her simply to show him and show him she did. But now basking in his arms while he slept so peacefully next to her, her heart needed him to know more even if it was just sub-consciously, she needed to say those words as much for her as for him.

So believing Chuck was still asleep Sarah gathered the courage and whispered ever so quietly into his chest. "I love you, Chuck."

After saying those words even just to her sleeping lover she felt such peace. They felt so right to say and she knew when the time came she would gladly say them when he was awake.

Sarah snuggled in closer to the wonderful naked man beside her, pulled her arms around him even tighter and fell back into blissful sleep next to the man she loved.

A couple of hours later, Sarah awoke again but this time she felt something different. Something was missing. She reached out to pull herself back into Chuck's arms but sadly all she felt was cool empty space. Realizing she was alone in the bed she slid herself up against the headboard, pulled the sheet up over he naked breasts and looked around the room for her boyfriend. Her stomach fluttered again as she said that word in her mind, a small contented smile on her face.

Not seeing him there, she listened for a bit and heard the sounds of the shower and Chuck's amazing voice as he sang a beautiful melody to himself. His voice, what had been the first thing that captivated her about him, was even more beautiful now as she could also hear the happiness he was feeling. Who knew Chuck was such a good singer as well. She grinned as she thought of the man, her man, with the water running down his fit naked form. She thought of how much fun it would be to be there with him right now washing his hair while he washed hers. Thinking about that intimate moment made her feel excited and parts of her body tingled with anticipation.

As she sat there daydreaming, deciding whether to join him or not she was slightly disappointed when she heard the water shut off. She wished that Chuck had woken her so she could have been joined him but she knew he probably didn't want to push things with her. She knew he respected her and was not the kind of guy to try and take advantage of her and push her limits of intimacy so soon. It would just have to be something for her to look forward to in the future.

After a few moments she saw Chuck come back into the bedroom dressed in his boxers with a towel drying his hair. She could tell he was trying to open the door quietly so as not to wake her. He pulled the towel from his head and draped it over his shoulders as he turned and looked over to see if Sarah was awake or not. Seeing her sitting there smiling back at him in his bed, obviously still naked was one of the most amazing sights he had ever seen. She simply took his breath away.

"Good morning, beautiful." His smile brighter than the rays of sunlight coming through the blinds.

"Well it was until I woke up cold and alone." She tried to feign hurt but she couldn't keep the sad face from breaking as she saw his loving smile.

"Well you looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you."

Sarah slid up a little higher against the headboard and patted the bed next to her, her blue eyes never leaving his. Chuck placed the towel over his desk chair, walked over and sat down next to her on the bed.

Sarah leaned over letting the sheet slip from covering her chest, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him tenderly. As she pulled back she smiled a devilish smile at him and said. "That, is how I want to be woken up in the future Chuck. Got it?"

"Duly noted." Chuck nodded and leaned in and kissed her once again.

As they both pulled back this time she gazed deeply into his eyes. "Chuck, last night was..." Chuck tenderly placed his index finger against her lips.

"Sssh, Sarah I know, believe me." Chuck could see hints of moisture pooling in Sarah's eyes.

"Chuck, I've never felt like this before. I've never been so happy." His warm smile filled with love as he gazed upon her.

"Neither have I Sarah. Even with what happened with Bryce and Jill, yesterday was probably the best day of my life and it's all because we found each other. So please just know that I feel the same way about last night. It was amazing." Chuck leaned over and kissed Sarah passionately.

After a few moments he smiled at his girlfriend. Her eyes so full of emotion and warmth. With another quick peck on the lips he slid back off the bed much to Sarah's disappointment. She gave him her best pouty look and he chuckled.

"Chuck, where are you going?"

"I know, I know but I have some plans for us today and we need to get you showered and fed." Chuck walked over to his desk and pointed to the clothes she had worn yesterday that were now washed, folded and placed there waiting for her.

Sarah's face lit up. Chuck was always full of surprises.

"Sarah, you should have everything you need in the shower. I've got a new spare toothbrush you are welcome to use, not that you need it, you have the sweetest morning breath ever, but feel free. Your clothes are all here, nice clean and dry for you. I'm going to go make some coffee and rustle us up some pancakes for breakfast."

"Wow, Chuck you didn't have to do all that."

"I know but I wanted to. You looked so beautiful sleeping there I just wanted everything to be perfect for you when you woke up."

"It's more than perfect Chuck. Thank you."

Chuck smiled back at the beautiful blonde who had now shifted devilishly on to her side exposing out of the sheet, her long slender naked skin from her shoulder to her hips, and all the way to her beautiful toes. "So what plans do you have for us….. Chuck?"

Chuck swore his heart stopped beating for a full minute gazing and the sight before him. "Wow, Sarah my god you're gorgeous."

Sarah blushing back was enjoying his response to her devilish move. "You're not so bad yourself, Chuck. But you didn't answer my question."

"Ahhh what question?" Chuck stammered, his mind totally lost and in shut down mode.

"You said you had plans for us today."

"Oh, yea, right my plans... ahh what were they ag... Oh yea my plans. Well it's a surprise so you're going to have to wait and see there temptress."

Sarah shifted again letting the sheet drop further and tried to hold back the giggle as she watched him try to be his normal respectful self and not let the normal male reaction to the site before him affect his gentlemanly nature.

Chuck just shook his head to stop staring as she smiled back at him reveling in his reaction. "You are a wicked woman, Sarah."

"Why thank you Chuck I do my best." She couldn't hold back her giggles any longer.

"But it's not going to work. You'll just have to wait and be surprised." He said with an equally devilish grin.

She teasingly pouted again. This was a fun game to play for both of them.

Finally after another long, wonderful minute of staring at the vision in front of him he turned and walked towards the door to head off to the kitchen to make their breakfast.

But like yesterday at the fraternity house, just before he reached for the doorknob to open the bedroom door, he stopped and turned his head around to look at his amazing girlfriend over his shoulder.

"Sarah?"

"Yes, Chuck?"

"Just so you know,…. I love you too." He then turned and headed out the door with a big triumphant grin on his face.

Sarah hesitated for a second he left the room, her jaw dropping in shock. Suddenly her eyes grew big as she realized he had heard her when she professed her love for him earlier. In a split second she jumped out of the bed and ran naked down the hall. She caught up to him quickly and threw herself on his back kissing his neck with as much passion as she could manage in her position.

Chuck grabbed her arms from around his shoulders and tried to rotate her to his chest all the while keeping her legs wrapped around his hips. Once in perfect position they kissed again. It was unlike any kiss they had had before. It was wanton, it was full of need and it was full of love.

After they finally needed to breathe, the kiss broke and Sarah nuzzled herself into Chuck's neck. Her breasts pressed against his heart. After a few moments she leaned back and Chuck could see that there were tears of joy in her eyes.

He took one hand off of her lower back, brushed them away and kissed her cheeks where they had been, the salty taste adding to the emotion of the moment. Once he was finished he gazed into those perfect blue pools and he spoke softly. "I love you, Sarah."

"I love you too, Chuck."

After a few more moments and a few more tender kisses Chuck lowered her legs so she could stand, her arms never leaving his neck.

"Now, you gorgeous, amazing, incredible, naked woman that I love, need to go take a shower and get dressed while your han..."

"Handsome, wonderful, kind, brilliant man that _I_ love, goes and makes breakfast." Sarah finished for him. She gave him a quick peck on the lips and turned to head towards the shower. As she did Chuck couldn't help himself as he watched her walk ever so gracefully away.

Sarah knowing he was watching her couldn't help herself as she added just a little more shimmy to her bottom as she walked. As she turned into the bathroom she looked towards her boyfriend one last time and blew him a kiss.

Chuck rolled his eyes as he turned and headed towards the kitchen_. "God that woman will be the death of me" _he said to himself as he walked into the kitchen smiling from ear to ear.

**April 27, 2003.**

**11:45 am**

**Exploratorium**

**San Francisco**

"Chuck, what is this place?"

"You've never been here?"

"Well, I've been to San Francisco certainly but never here. This place is amazing."

"Yea it is, isn't it. I come here a couple of times a year but this is the first time I have ever taken my girlfriend."

"What, afraid she might find out you're a nerd? Sorry to have to break this to you Chuck, but that ship has sailed." Sarah leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

"Ha... funny girl. No, its just I never had a girlfriend who I knew would enjoy and appreciate these places that are special to me just as much as I do. Besides I get to show off to all the other nerds what a lucky assed nerd I am to have you as my girlfriend."

"Well I'm the lucky one here Chuck. Remember that." Sarah grabbed his hand and pulled him in closer giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Come on, we've got tickets for the noon trip through the 'tactile dome'. I hope you aren't afraid of the dark or claustrophobic?"

"Nope and when I'm with you I kind of like the idea of touching things in the dark." Her devilish smile back again.

"Ahhh ok. Just remember there may be kids in there so make sure you know what and who you are touching ok?"

"Ok fine, I'll keep my hands to myself then."

"Oh.. no don't do that. just be careful ok?"

Sarah smiled and nodded. But as soon as they entered the Tactile Dome and the darkness fell upon them Sarah reached out and grabbed Chuck's left butt cheek."

"Sarah!"

"Sorry." She said giggling.

After a couple of fantastic hours where Sarah watched in awe as Chuck was in his glory, telling her about all of his favorite exhibits and about his trips here with Morgan, Sarah's stomach growled and she turned beet red.

"Ok, I guess 'someone' has heard enough of my nerdy ramblings."

"Chuck, no I'm... ahh... sorr.." Sarah just put her face in her hands embarrassed at how loud her hunger announced it's presence.

Chuck was laughing at how mortified she was. But still so incredibly beautiful.

"It's ok Sarah it's time for lunch anyway and I've got just the spot."

"Ok. I am a bit hungry."

"Oh really, you could have fooled me?" He said laughing before he leaned in to kiss her one more time.

**3:27 pm**

**Pompeii's Grotto**

**Fisherman's Wharf**

"Wow, this chowda is great. I haven't had any this good since I was in Boston when I was twelve." Sarah licked her lips like it was ambrosia.

"Wow, I've never been back east but Bry... someone had some flown in special from New England and this is almost as good as that I think."

"Mhhhh, it's delicious." Sarah closed her eyes as she savored another spoon full. "And Chuck, it's ok. You can mention his name. Bryce is in the past... for both of us."

"Thanks, it's just a little awkward with us both knowing him in some rather unpleasant circumstances." Chuck looked down at his bowl and stirred the milky delight.

Sarah seeing things still bothered him, changed the subject. "So how do you know about this place? I love it here."

"Well, when I first came to Stanford, Ellie and Awesome drove me up here with my stuff and after we moved everything into my dorm we came up to San Francisco for the day. None of us had ever been here so we did the whole tourist thing, went to the Golden Gate Bridge, took a ferry around Alcatraz, went to the park where they filmed the open of Full House."

"Full House?"

"Yea, Olson twins? Bob Sagat?"

"Ahh, I didn't get to watch much TV when I was younger."

"Well you're probably better off because of it. I don't know how many brain cells I've killed in front of the TV in my lifetime. When we were little it's about all we had." Sarah noticed Chuck was a little melancholy for a second but it passed. She let it go but hoped someday they could talk about it.

"Anyway, well we had to go to Fisherman's Wharf for lunch and just happened to come in here. We liked the outside tables and the food was great, so I come back whenever I'm in town." Chuck tried to smile brightly but Sarah knew something else was up. She decided to change the subject a bit and see if she could figure out what was going on in Chuck's mind. After their mutual professions of love she was happier than she had ever been but something was off with Chuck. Did he regret saying it? Did he not feel the same as she does? Sarah didn't want to believe any of that but his demeanor was frightening her just a bit.

"Chuck, is something wrong? ...Is it Bryce?...or is it about last night and what we said this morning? Do you regre...?"

Chuck looking up from his chowda, was taken back by the question. He stopped her immediately and reached over to take her hands in his. " Oh God no Sarah. That was the most amazing night of my life and what we said this morning were the most beautiful words I've ever heard. So please don't think I have any regrets, please no. I've never been happier, honest."

"Ahh thank god. I've never been happier either but something is going on in that amazing brain of yours and it's freaking me out a little bit."

Chuck took a deep breath and then pulled her hands over so he could kiss them while he held them gently in his. "Sarah, it's just I love you and I don't want to lose you now that I've found you."

"Lose me? Chuck, I love you too, why do you think you're going to lose me?"

"Sarah, looks it's just ..." Chuck took two quick breaths and calmed himself before speaking. "Sarah, we both have been avoiding talking about something very big that is coming up. Now I know we've talked about tons of stuff and I love every minute of those talks but there is kind of a great big pink elephant standing right next to us and both of us have been avoiding looking at him for a while now. But he's really getting closer every day and I don't think we can avoid him any longer."

Sarah frowned slightly as she knew exactly what he was talking about. She squeezed his hands tightly and lifted her eyes to look deeply in those of the man she loved.

"Sarah, graduation is in three weeks and we start the rest of out lives. What happens to us? I just found you and I don't want to let you go."

"Chuck, I don't want to let you go either. I think we both know something very special has been going on for the last two months. Plus last night and this morning changed everything. I don't want to go back to the way it was before, before this, before you. I can't and I won't."

"Neither do I but we can't stay here. Morgan's lease is up June 1st and you have to get out of your place a few days after graduation. I mean you could come and stay with us till the end of the month but then what?"

"Chuck, you are going to want to go back and live with Ellie, maybe I could find a place..."

"Sarah, no. You've been planning to go to DC after graduation all along. For your career it's the perfect spot to live. I don't want you to give up on your dream to come and live in LA while I live with my sister. Bryce is a jerk but when he said that about living with Ellie while he's in some expensive co-op on the upper west side, it got me thinking. I don't want to live with my sister. I want to find my own place and build my own life. I don't have a clue exactly what that life will be like but I know one thing for certain, I want you in it... every day and every step along the way."

Sarah clutching his hands even tighter again felt the fear she had been feeling about their future flow out of her like it was picked up by the ocean breeze. "Chuck, ..I.. I want that too. I want my dream but I want you more. I want you, no I need you in my life too."

"Sarah, look I'm an engineer, a nerd, a computer geek. Guy's like me are needed everywhere. But you, you want to be in International relations, to use you gift of languages and help our country keep it's place in the world. There is no better place for that than Washington D.C. That's where you need to be to live your dream. I want you to have that and make that dream come true."

"Chuck, that dream only comes true for me if you are there with me to share it. Neither of us have any big ties to anywhere. I never see my father and your sister has her life in LA. We're both adults and can make our own decisions. Come with me Chuck. Let's move to DC. You are so great at what you do and with an honors degree from Stanford there will be tons of agencies looking for a guy like you."

Chuck's eyes lit up and his smile grew as big as the arch of Golden Gate Bridge at the entrance to San Francisco Bay. "Really Sarah? You want me to come with you to DC?"

"Of course Chuck. I want you in my life and I I just couldn't bear to be three thousand miles away from you. So yes, please come to DC with me."

"Yes! Thank you Sarah I mean I'd love to come to DC. I mean we don't have to live together or any thing we can get separate apartments if you want, close by of course so we don't need a car and..."

"Chuck, your rambling again." "_God he was so cute when he did that." _She thought.

"Oh yea sorry it's just I'm really happy right now."

Sarah leaned in and kissed him tenderly across the table. "I'm really happy too, Chuck. We can talk about living together and all that later. Let's just enjoy the beautiful weather, the beautiful view." She said as she looked across the bay.

"I already am looking at the most beautiful view I've ever seen." Chuck said as his gaze never left her. Sarah turned back and blushed as she saw that he wasn't looking at the ocean but at her.

"Thank you Chuck." she said shyly. But then a concern came into her head. "Chuck, what are going to tell Ellie? I mean I don't want her to hate me for taking her brother three thousand miles away before I even meet her."

"Sarah, first of all she would never hate you. That's just not Ellie. Second it's my decision not hers but I think it would be better if we waited, have her meet you first, see how amazing you are and then we can tell her together."

"Chuck, while I appreciate you want me to be there. She's your sister, you should tell her in private. I don't want to intrude on your family."

"Sarah, we moving to DC together I think that kind of qualifies you to be there." He said with a sweet kind grin on his face.

"I know and thank you for that but still. She's never met me and I think it would be best coming from you."

"Ok. How about this. When she comes to graduation, we'll have them over for dinner and after a bit you can take Awesome for a walk or something maybe to get some more wine and I'll talk to her about it. Then you and Devon can come back and we'll all celebrate. Ok?"

"I hope she'll want to celebrate and not kill me."

"Oh I know my sister and when she meets you she will love you in about two minutes. She'll be happy for me because she'll see how happy you make me Sarah."

"You make me happy too Chuck. Now let's finish our lunch and you can take me to that park where those billionaire twins you seem so interested in used to work." she said with a sly grin.

"Ok but you do know twins are every guys.."

Sarah punched Chuck in his arm. "Don't you dare finish that sentence if you know what's good for you." They both tried to keep a straight face but were highly unsuccessful.

"Ok, ok, ok. You are the only one I'll ever fantasize about, Sarah."

"I better be, _boyfriend_" a sternness mixed with a sly smile as she said the last word.

"Yes_, girlfriend_. Only you, I promise. After the park we can head back. Morgan should be back from LA and we have to do the show tonight."

"Ok, I've got some work to do to finish up for my classes and stuff like laundry to do too. But thank you Chuck."

"For what?"

"For bringing me here, for sharing things that matter to you with me and just for being you. I'm so lucky to have found you."

"Sarah, I'm the lucky one, believe me but you're welcome."

Chuck and Sarah leaned across the table and they met in the middle in a warm kiss full of joy and hope. Many incredible things had happened this weekend. Some amazing experiences, some painful ones as well as some life changing moments. All of the joy they both felt as their futures were becoming tied together as one, was put into that kiss.

**May 16, 2003**

**4:12pm**

**Chuck and Morgan's apartment**

Chuck reached for the Windex and an overly generous batch of paper towels for what seemed like the tenth time in the last half hour. He sprayed the already spotless counter with a generous supply of the blue cleaner and began to vigorously wipe down the imaginary stains his nervous brain kept showing him. He could feel his heart racing for the last five hours. Any minute now the woman who basically raised him was coming to visit and share in the celebration of his graduation from Stanford University.

That part of the visit's activities he knew his sister was really excited about. She was incredibly proud of him for all that he had accomplished in his time in Palo Alto and the joy of sharing it with her had Chuck feeling a sense of pride in himself as well. He was graduating from the prestigious school Magna Cum Laude with a double major in Computer and Electrical Engineering and he had fulfilled the promise he had made to Ellie four years ago.

But that was the easy part of the weekend's activities. Well not entirely. He was certain that Ellie would love Sarah as much as he did but he wasn't sure how Ellie would feel about the idea of he and Sarah moving to DC, together. It had always been assumed that the plan was for Chuck to return to Burbank and live with Ellie and her boyfriend Devon but a phone call into his radio show two months ago had changed his life forever.

He expected that once Ellie got to see how special Sarah was for herself that she would embrace his new found independence and the new direction of his life but the thought of disappointing Ellie by moving three thousand miles away bothered Chuck greatly. For many years they were basically their only family and now just when they were going to be reunited after four years of college, they were going to be separated by an even greater distance. Chuck knew that it was the right decision for him, he was absolutely positive of that. But still that didn't calm his nerves when he thought about actually telling Ellie.

But over the past three weeks since he and Sarah decided to take the next step in their lives together, he had become more and more certain he was making the right choice. He and Sarah had fallen head over heels in love with each other and everything about this decision seemed like he was in a way still moving home. It was just his future home, not his past one. Sarah was his home and he was hers.

"Buddy, how many times are you going to clean the same spot? If you do it any longer we are going to have to let the landlord keep the security deposit so he can replace the Formica you scrubbed into oblivion."

"Morgan, it's Ellie!"

"I know Chuck but the apartment is cleaner than it ever has been. You and Sarah both have been going non-stop since tuesday."

"I just want to make sure that everything is perfect so she is in a good mood when I tell her about our plans for after graduation."

"Chuck, you know I wasn't too keen on my hetero life partner moving three thousand miles away either but seeing you and Sarah together I'd have to be blind or incredibly selfish not to know you two are making the right decision. Ellie will too. You know she has incredible almost spy-like instincts about stuff like that. She'll look at you two making googlie eyes at each other and in about two seconds know you belong together. She'll be happy and even more proud of you than she already is."

"Really?"

"Chuck my man, we are talking about Ellie Bartowski here. The most amazing woman I've had the pleasure of knowing. Just give her a few minutes with Sarah and she'll be helping you pack the rental truck an hour later. Trust me."

"I hope you're right buddy."

"Have I ever steered you wrong?

"Does the name Sega Saturn mean anything to you?"

"Ahh well this is different and I'm allowed one mistake. Remember I'm not the one that thought the Amiga was going to put the Mac out of business when Apple was on the ropes."

"Ouch... yea well I still say it was ahead of its time."

"DING DONG"

Chuck and Morgan's heads both spun towards the door. Ellie and Devon were here.

Chuck put the paper towels in the trash and headed towards the door. He took a deep breath to prepare for Hurricane Ellie and Captain Awesome's arrival.

"CHUCK! I'm so proud of you!" The beautiful brunette launched herself at her younger brother.

"Thanks... El... can't ...breath..."

"Ohh I'm sorry Chuck I'm just so excited to see you." Ellie Bartowski's hugs could be classified as a lethal weapon. She could get Stone Cold Steve Austin to tap out with that move. She let go of her brother and gave him a big kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks Ellie it's great to see you too."

"Hey bro, congratulations!"

The handsome, tal,l blonde man pulled Chuck into a bear hug of his own.

"Hey Devon, thanks for coming."

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Even though my Bruins kick Stanford's ass again this year it's still a great school and you should be very proud, Chuck."

"Thanks Devon."

The small bearded one stood over to the side waiting for his one-time fantasy girl to notice him. That infatuation had long passed but still Morgan felt that Ellie B was the perfect woman.

"Hey Morgan." Ellie said with a big smile. Morgan took a few steps forward and reached out his hand but Ellie would have nothing of it. She pulled him into a slightly less intense hug but she still was very proud of Chuck's best friend.

"Congratulations. I'm sure your mom is very proud."

"Thank Ellie, she is. You'll see her tomorrow at the Stadium commencement." Morgan then looked at Devon and even though he intimidated the hell out of him he reached out his had to shake the love of Ellie's life. "Good to see you Capt...ah .. Devon."

"You too man. Congrats. Real life is a coming Bro!"

"Don't remind me. I'm scared enough as it is."

"You'll be fine Morgan. You graduated Stanford, that should get you in quite a few doors."

"Yea, I hope so but it means the end of all night video game marathons, and my work aversion skills are going to have to go on hold like,... forever."

"Hey, it's time to grow up there Peter Pan." Ellie said with a loving smile.

"So Chuck when do I get to meet Sarah?"

"Ahh yea she thought she would give us some family time for a bit. She's going to pick up the dinner we ordered and should be here around six."

"Chuck, while I appreciate she did that but I eager to meet this woman who seems to have had such a positive effect on my little brother. And with what I can tell from your phonecalls, she's already kind of family herself."

"Yea well she just figured it would be nice for us to talk for a bit before she got here." Chuck's general nervousness had lessened but he still knew there was another more important conversation yet to come.

"Well that's awfully sweet of her. I can't wait to meet her."

"She's amazing and you're going to love her like I... Ahh She's pretty excited to meet you too Ellie."

The elder Bartowski smiled as she caught the slip. Chuck had not used that word yet when he was telling her about Sarah. The last time he said it was just before that bitch Jill broke his heart. Ellie never liked her and saw right through her phony facade but she never said anything as it was Chuck's life and his choice. But she did dance that happy dance just a bit too much after Chuck had told her that they had broken up though she would never tell him that.

The guys had a couple of beers while Ellie a glass of wine and the four friends talked for a while about all of the weekend's activities and Ellie and Devon told them about going's on at the hospital, They both had one more year of internship and then residency. At about quarter to six Morgan left to go meet his mom at her hotel for dinner with their family. That left the three others to wait for Sarah.

Sarah sat outside the apartment building where Chuck and Morgan lived for a few moments before she made her entrance. She had seen Morgan leave and waved to him as he drove off. She was both excited and a bit terrified about what was ahead of her. She was going to meet the most important person in Chuck's life for the first time and then they were going to tell her that Chuck wasn't coming back to Burbank to live with her. Instead they were planning to move to the other side of the country... together.

Even after only knowing Chuck for about two months she had never been happier in her life. Her dream of working at the International Relations was hopefully about to come true and she was going to share that dream with the most amazing man she had ever known. She loved Chuck with all her heart. Even though some might say things were moving a bit fast, she didn't care. This was right and she was certain of it. Sarah had no real family home to go to and had always planned to go to Washington after graduation but a part of her was a bit scared of the prospect of being alone in a new city. But she knew that wasn't the reason she was happy that Chuck was coming with her. He wasn't a crutch, he was someone who wanted her to live her dream and just wanted to be by her side when she did it. And she desperately wanted him there.

They were still planning on spending a few weeks in Burbank before they headed east, taking their time driving across country and enjoying the last summer they would have before real adulthood hit. They both really didn't have too much stuff and they had planned to keep it in storage in Burbank until they found a place to live. Once they found an apartment Chuck would fly back and he and Morgan would drive their stuff back east while Sarah set up their new home.

The idea of living together was a little scary too but it had both a practical value as well as an emotional one. First financially it was the best decision and they had both realized over the past few weeks that they were virtually inseparable anyway. That along with spending the summer travelling together would hopefully prepare them well for the challenges of living with someone for the first time. It was a risk but a risk they both wanted to take.

"Ok Sarah the food is going to get cold if you avoid going in any longer. She's just his sister how tough can it be?"

Sarah took a deep breath before she knocked on the door to the apartment.

"That must be Sarah." Chuck got up from the couch and went to open the door. His beautiful sister had just opened up a bottle of Merlot and took a rather large sip as she waited to meet her baby brother's girlfriend.

"Hey" Sarah smiled nervously at her boyfriend. He reached out and took the food from her before giving her a tender kiss on the lips. He mouthed "Relax, it will be fine" to her with his back to the others who were sitting on the couch.

After placing the food on the counter he took Sarah's hand and walked over to where Ellie and Devon were sitting. Both had a bit of a stunned look on their faces. Chuck had told them how beautiful Sarah was but the reality was something else entirely. Devon graciously stood up and with a big Woodcomb smile on his face extended his hand towards the blonde.

"Devon this is Sarah, Sarah Devon."

"Wow Chuck I mean... So great to meet you Sarah."

"You too Devon." She responded shyly but Devon's smile was warm and welcoming.

Sarah then turned towards the brunette. She could easily see the family resemblance. She had the same wonderful Bartowski smile that lit up a room.

"Sarah, this is my sister Ellie, Ellie this is my girlfriend Sarah." Chuck clutched her hand ever so slightly reassuring her and calming her nerves. His touch always seemed to do that.

"Ellie, it's so great to meet you. Chuck has told me so many wonderful things about you I feel like I know you already."

Ellie's smile grew even wider. Instead of saying anything she simply reached out and pulled Sarah into a warm, wonderful hug. The tension in Sarah's shoulders melted away. Ellie whispered quietly in Sarah's ear so that only she could hear. "Thank you Sarah. Thank you for making Chuck so happy." She squeezed her just a little tighter.

After a few seconds the two women in Chuck's life pulled back. Chuck noticed that both of their eyes were a bit moist. It warmed his heart to see the birth of their special bond.

After a few seconds Ellie spoke. "Sarah, my god Chuck didn't do you justice. You're gorgeous."

Sarah blushed at the complement. It wasn't fake or had an alternate meaning. It was just an honest Bartowski compliment.

"Thanks Ellie. Chuck told me that you basically raised him the last few years. That must have been incredibly difficult for someone so young but you did an amazing job."

They both looked at the smiling man with the curly hair. "Yea, he did turn out pretty great didn't he?"

"That he did." Sarah smiled at the love of her life and looked deeply into his eyes. Chuck returned it in kind and Ellie immediately saw their connection. She could tell easily they loved each other. In just five minutes of seeing Chuck and Sarah together she saw a stronger connection between the two than she ever saw between Chuck and Jill after two years of dating. They both had it bad and it made Ellie's heart leap.

"So now that the Chuck lovefest and introductions are out of the way how about we have something to eat. I bet you two are starving after driving for so long."

"Thanks Chuck. I am pretty hungry." Devon said as he headed over to help Chuck get the food set on the counter.

"Chuck this smells delicious where did you get it?"

"Ahh for that I have to defer to Morgan. He knows all the great cheap places to eat from here to San Francisco."

"Sarah would you like a glass of wine?"

"Yes, thanks Ellie."

"So Sarah, Chuck told me about how you met. It sounds incredibly romantic." Ellie said as she helped Sarah set the table.

"Well, it was a pretty special moment. I was just doing some laundry and trying to find something nice and soothing on the radio to listen to. Then all of a sudden I heard this amazing voice come through the boombox my dad have given me as a kid. I don't know why but it just seemed to grab me. There was just something about it. It was so soothing and I don't know, kind I guess. I listened to it for a bit and for some reason when he asked for requests something told me I had to call in. It was kind of like a connection I didn't have control of."

"Wow, that is romantic. How did you get from calling in to the station to finally meeting?"

"Well that's where my roommate comes in.. Carina..." Ellie watched very closely as Sarah told the story from her point of view. She saw the light in Sarah's eyes and the way she looked over at Chuck a few times who was talking with Devon in the kitchen as she told the story. She obviously cared a great deal about her brother. The love she saw in Sarah's eyes was undeniable. It was real and it was deeply felt. Plus she really was starting to like Sarah. She was beautiful yes but she was also genuine, kind and definitely very smart.

Ellie Bartowski was pleased, very pleased. Chuck had found a good one... this time.

"...So when we were at the festival, Chuck asked me if I would go to dinner with him and of course I said yes."

"Ahh the dinner and the kiss at the Gazebo. Chuck only told me a little about that night." Ellie smiled warmly at the blonde beauty.

Sarah's face turned red. She closed her eyes for a bit and remembered that incredibly romantic moment and that amazing kiss. "Always the gentleman. But yea... it was pretty special."

The two women exchanged knowing looks that only females can understand just as the men returned to signal it was time to eat. Chuck looked at the two women in his life and decided it was probably better not to ask what they were talking about. But of course Ellie couldn't turn down a chance to tease her brother.

"Chuck, Sarah was just telling me about your first kiss at the Gazebo, I never knew you were such an incredible romantic." Both women smiled waiting for his reaction.

Chuck looking back and forth cautiously between the two women then looked over to Devon for moral support who gave Chuck the look of_ 'you're on your own with this one.' _"Ahhh well .um ...ah... I guess Sarah brings out the best in me." He said almost questioningly.

"Good answer" they both said at the same time.

The foursome sat down and ate their dinner. The conversation was flowing. Ellie of course had to let Sarah in on a few of Chuck's most embarrassing moments while Chuck of course had to talk about Ellie's 'goth' period.

"Sarah you should have seen her. The dark eye shadow, the beads, the 'Henna' tattoos, the black leather skirt with the torn fishnet stockings it was hilarious."

"Hey, I was 14 and dad was never around so I thought this would get his attention. But of course he could of cared less. He was always hanging out with his buddies and never home."

Sarah noticed the sadness in both of their eyes. Chuck's parents were a sore subject for both of them.

"Well I bet you are probably the only 'goth' teen to ever graduate from UCLA Medical School with high honors." The four all saluted with their drinks. "To Ellie..."

"Thanks but no Chuck." Ellie interrupted. "We should be toasting you, Morgan and Sarah. This is your weekend."

"Ok, how about to good friends and family. They are what make life worth living."

"Here, here." The four said in unison as they clinked their bottles and glasses.

Once the table was cleared, the dishes done and the food containers washed and recycled, the four retired to the living room. All of Sarah's worries about the evening were long gone. Ellie was incredible and had made her feel so warm and welcome. It must be a Bartowski trait. Devon may look like he came right off the page of the Abercrombie and Fitch catalog but he was kind, very bright and quite accomplished. These new friends felt more like family than anything she had ever known.

Ellie had quickly developed an incredible fondness for Sarah. She was bright, beautiful and she loved her brother. She was the best thing that had ever happened to him. Ellie had been noticing a new confidence in him the past few months and now she knew why. Sarah brought out the best in Chuck. No more mopping around like after Jill. He was happy, fun, alive and most definitely totally in love with an amazing woman who was clearly just as in love with him.

Chuck done good.

After another half hour of friendly conversation, Chuck glanced over at Sarah and they knew it was time for 'the talk.'

"Devon would you.."

"Sarah, it's ok."

"Chuck I thought..."

"No it's ok I want you here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

Ellie and Devon both looked very confused.

Ellie spoke first. "Chuck, what's going on?" She was curious but also a bit concerned with the mysterious conversation the two had had.

"Nothing Ellie, it's just Sarah and I want to talk to you about something."

"What is it Chuck? You're kind of starting to scare me."

"Oh it's nothing bad we promise." Chuck gulped a bit and looked at Sarah before reaching out to take her hand in his.

Noticing the gesture, Ellie's eyes grew as big as saucers. "Chuck? Sarah? are you?... did you?..."

Both Chuck and Sarah were startled as they both suddenly realized what Ellie was thinking. "Oh no, no, no, not that, believe me." The couple looked back and forth between each other and their company. Relief was now evident on Ellie's face.

Chuck leaned in towards his sister and he smiled before taking a deep breath.

"Ellie, I think you can tell that Sarah and I love each other very much."

"Well duh, even a blind person could tell that. I don't think I've seen many long married couples more in love that you two seem to be after such a short time."

Chuck and Sarah looked at each other and smiled warmly. _'Here goes'_ Chuck told Sarah with his eyes.

"Well Sarah has always dreamed of working in International relations in Washington for say the State Department. Helping our country and it's place in the world."

"That's very honorable Sarah. You'd be great in that role."

"Thank you Ellie." She said humbly.

The three all looked back at Chuck waiting for him to continue. "So after graduation Sarah is going to be moving to DC." Chuck looked back and forth between the two woman gauging Ellie's reaction while Devon seemed to catch on more easily to where this was going.

"Ellie, Sarah's moving to Washington and I'm going with her."

"That's great Chuck, she could use your help moving." she said not really understanding though Devon did. He nodded his head ever so slightly at the couple.

"No Ellie, I'm not going to help Sarah move, I'm moving with her. Sarah and I are moving to Washington, together."

Ellie's mouth opened and both Chuck and Sarah waited nervously as to how the elder Bartowski would react. After a few agonizing seconds, Ellie got up and threw her arms around the young couple and gave them both a huge hug as tears started to flow down her cheek. Devon seeing the scene in front of him got up and joined them. "Group hug, huh... Awesome! Congratulations guys."

Ellie let go after a few moments and wiped away the tears. "Oh Chuck,"

Chuck a bit stunned by her reaction asked, "You're not mad I'm not coming to live with you?"

"Of course not. I'll admit I was kind of looking forward to having my little brother around but I'm so proud of you taking charge of your life like this. After the whole thing with Jill I was kind of worried you were going to come home and sit in your room eating cheese balls while you wasted your Stanford degree working at some unchallenging job like the BuyMore."

"Hey I liked working there."

"Maybe so but you, my brilliant little brother are meant for great things. Someone with your skills and talent would be a big catch for any smart company or agency in DC."

"Thanks Ellie, I kind of was thinking the same thing. I know Washington is on the other side of the country but that's where Sarah needs to be. It would be much easier for me to find work there than for Sarah to find it in LA. And the one thing I know for certain is I want to be with Sarah." Chuck smiled and kissed his girlfriend on the lips tenderly.

"Ellie, the one thing I know for certain is I want to be with Chuck. I love him and now that I've finally found him, I don't want a long distance relationship. I hope you'll forgive me."

"Forgive you? For what?"

"For taking your little brother away from you."

"Sarah, you're not taking him away from me, Chuck will always be my little brother and one day maybe. you'll be my little sister. Sure I'll miss him but he's been away at college for the last four years. He's learned to take charge of his own life and he's found an incredible woman who loves him and wants to be with him. How could I ever be upset about that?"

"Thank you Ellie. I just didn't..."

"Sarah, I know you haven't known Chuck all that long but I can easily tell what you two have together is real, very real. I can see it in your eyes. I can see it when you look at each other when you think no one is watching. My brother has it bad for you and you have it just as bad for him. So I'm happy for you both. You two are some of the lucky ones like Devon and I that were blessed by finding each other at the right place and at the right time. No matter whether you think it was luck, some unknown force or just the random mixing of events, what happened that night when you heard Chuck on the radio brought you both to this place and this time. Like Devon's choosing UCLA over Columbia. Me bumping into him at orientation, Chuck deciding to volunteer for the radio station or you listening to music while doing laundry. All those seemingly minor events changed all our lives for the better. I truly believe that. And so will this move to Washington."

"Wow, that was amazing sis. I love you."

"I love you too."

"Would you be opposed to a little brother sister hugging action?"

"I wouldn't be opposed to it." Ellie said with a warm smile.

As the two siblings hugged, Sarah and Devon both were so happy that those two had each other. They were both incredible people and the love and devotion they shared for each other was priceless.

"How about another round to celebrate?" Devon asked lightening the mood.

"Great idea. I'll help you. I have to go to the little girls room anyway." Ellie said as she got up leaving Chuck and Sarah alone.

"See I told you there was nothing to worry about." Chuck said into Sarah's ear as he pulled her in for a much needed hug.

"Chuck your sister is amazing. You are lucky to have her."

"Yes I am but I'm also lucky to have you. I love you Sarah."

"I love you too, Chuck." The couple kissed tenderly with all the love they shared.

Once Devon and Ellie returned with the drinks they talked about the plan to stay in Burbank for a few weeks before taking a long slow drive across country to DC. After a few more celebratory drinks it was time to call a cab for Ellie and Devon back to their hotel. They were not really in condition to drive and their hotel was only a few blocks away. It was probably better to leave their car here and walk back to Chuck's apartment for the commencement ceremony anyway. Plus it would help with any possible hangover the couple might feel.

After they said their goodbyes, Chuck and Sarah retired to Chuck's bedroom. They slept more soundly than they had all week. Ellie was happy for them and they were both excited to begin their new life together.

**May 19, 2003**

**1:50 AM**

**KZSU Studio 3**

"This is Chuck Bartowski broadcasting live on KZSU-FM, the student run radio station of Stanford University. This is my last show at KZSU. I want to thank my loyal listeners who I've gotten to share all of this great music with over my years here. These four hours each week have been some of the best times of my life. I've gotten to know so many of you through your phone calls to the request line or when you come by and visited with us while we were on remote.

" I also want to thank Morgan Grimes for his tireless dedication to the show and for being the best friend and roommate a nerd like me could ever have. Thanks Morgan. And thank you to all the great musicians who put so much of themselves into their music and can take us on such an emotional and spiritual ride each week.

"For my last song I'd like to play a special request and dedication to someone who because of this radio station changed my life for the better. I hope she knows just how much she means to me and that I will work everyday to live up to the meaning of this song. I love you Sarah. This is for you. Keith Jarrett, Someone To Watch Over Me. Thank you and good night, Palo Alto."

**A/N2 There will be another chapter/epilogue to this story. I wanted to have a few more things in here to wind up the story but this chapter was already pushing 10K words so some loose ends will be taken care of shortly. I'm going to finish this before the next chapter of LL&L comes out. Thanks again to everyone for the great response this story has generated.**


	9. A Love Supreme

**A/N First of all sorry for the delay in posting this final chapter. But I made a pact with my own blond ninja bad ass to not write while on vacation. Just like Sarah she always accomplishes her mission.**

**Thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed and alerted this story. More comments following the chapter. **

**Keep an eye on the dates as there are some serious time jumps.  
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**Still don't own Chuck.  
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**Chapter 9**

**A Love Supreme**

**May 21, 2003**

**10:56 AM**

**Oak Creek Residences**

**Apartment 216**

"Sarah, do we have any more packing tape?"

"Yea, there should be one more roll on top of the refrigerator."

"Thanks roomie..." Carina's breath hitched a little as she realized that she was probably calling Sarah that for the last time. She closed her eyes as she felt the tears welling up within them.

"Carina are you sure you don't need..." Sarah said as she walked back into the living room with another box of books she was going to put in Chuck and Morgan's storage unit at their apartment before they headed to Burbank. "Carina sweetie, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing really, it all just kind of hit me when I called you 'roomie'."

Sarah placed the box in the corner with her other stuff. "I know. I've been thinking about it all morning."

"We've lived together for four years and after today that's never going to happen again. I'm really going to miss you Sarah."

Sarah walked over and pulled Carina into one of the many hugs they have been giving each other over the past coupled of weeks getting ready for today. "I'm going to miss you too, Carina. But when Chuck and I get to Burbank in ten days I promise we are going rock LA!"

"I know but its gonna be tough living at home again."

"Carina, your parents are great and its only until you find your own place. How's that going anyway?"

"Well I've got some leads but the ones I like are too expensive and the ones I can afford I wouldn't want my dog living in."

"Still don't want to get a roommate to make it more affordable?"

"I would but the roommate I want is going to be three thousand miles away."

"Carina, I'm sorry..."

"No Sarah, it's ok you don't have to apologize. I get it really. Your career is in DC, mine's in LA. We've always known that. Besides you have Chuck now and you don't need me hanging around anymore."

"Carina! Don't you ever say that. I'm always going to need you. You are my best friend. I love Chuck but I love you too. I'll always want you in my life. There are just some things I would never talk to Chuck about and I need to talk to you. It's the same for him. He talks to Morgan about things he couldn't talk to me about. We both need that and the fact that he get's that is one of thousands of reasons why I love him. We won't be living together anymore but you will still be my best friend."

The two college graduates pulled each other into a warm and comforting hug.

"You'll always be my best friend too, Sarah." The redhead said after they pulled apart.

"I don't say it often enough but thank you Carina."

"For what?" Carina's head pulled back questioningly.

"For everything. For being my best friend, for always looking out for me, for taking care of me and most of all for bringing me to meet Chuck. I don't know if I could have done it on my own and now I can't imagine my life without him in it."

"God, you've got it bad for the nerd, don't you?"

"You have no idea." Sarah said as the two chuckled.

"Well for what it's worth, I'm really happy for you both. Chuck is a great guy and you'd have to be blind not to see how much he loves you. I know it hasn't been that long for you two but when it's right, it's right and you two together are the definition of right."

"Thanks, he is pretty amazing isn't he?"

"That he is and so are you Sarah. I'm glad you found each other."

The two friends attention was suddenly diverted by the sounds of two other best friends coming down the hall towards the small apartment.

"Speaking of Mr. Fantastic and his sidekick Robin."

"Hey Carina, Hi Sarah."

"Hi Chuck, Hi Morgan."

"Hi Sarah, but Carina that was just wrong on so many levels. Mr. Fantastic was in the Fantastic Four, and Robin was Batman's ward. Fantastic Four is Marvel and Batman is DC. Besides..."

Chuck interrupted. "Ok Morgan I think they get the picture."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "I can't believe I actually understood what Morgan was saying."

"See beautiful? I told you I was going to make you an honorary nerd some day." Chuck walked over and passionately kissed the woman he loved.

"I'm not sure why but if you keep kissing me like that I guess I can live with it."

"Get a room, will you?" Carina said with a smirk.

"Actually, that's why I'm here, Carina." Chuck smirked back.

"Ok, ok I get it. Just keep the sordid details to yourself ok?

"Jealous much?" Sarah spoke while holding back her laughter.

"Actually, I am ok. You got a problem with that blondie? I'm not used to being the ...oh never mind ok?"

"So Carina, are you sure you don't need any help with all this stuff?" Chuck said as he looked around the apartment realizing that the majority of the stuff wasn't Sarah's.

"Thanks for the offer Chuck, but I got things covered." The redhead said with a wink.

"Ok, but if you have anything left over you won't need right away, Morgan, Sarah and I can bring it down in the truck we rented, well Ellie rented for us, after Memorial Day."

"I'm good but thanks."

Sarah looked at her roommate and noticed the sassy gleam in her eye. Carina was up to something and it made her smile. Carina could definitely take care of herself.

"So Sarah what do we start on first?"

"Well lets put the stuff I'm putting in the storage unit in the car first. Those two suitcases have the clothes I'll be needing until we head to Burbank next week so those go in last. I'll just carry my backpack with my laptop."

"Ok let's get started Morgan."

After about forty-five minutes all of Sarah's belongings were packed carefully into Chuck's car. There was only enough room left over for Chuck to drive and Sarah would ride back to the apartment with Morgan. Just as the three were getting ready to head out for the final trip to the car they each grabbed a bottle of water.

"Carina, are you sure you don't want us to come back and give you a hand? It wouldn't be any trouble." offered Chuck.

"Now why would she need any help from a bunch of loser nerds like you clowns when she's got a champion like me to help her?" A booming male voice said with a laugh from behind them in the doorway.

"Hey, one beer pong victory doesn't make you a champion, Butch. I had three finals that week and was off my game. Besides if you hadn't left before the end of that rain delay the weekend before we would have had you two."

"Yea, woulda, coulda, shoulda. Chuck but I don't think my partner there is buying any of it. We won fair and square so that makes us Champions."

Sarah looked over at her roommate as she watched the interchange between Chuck and Butch. She saw a twinkle in Carina's eyes and it made Sarah smile. Carina turned to Sarah and gave her a wink. Sarah just nodded her head letting her know she was pleased.

"So Carina, I guess this is what you meant by having it covered?" Chuck asked with a smile.

"Well I figured if anyone could figure out how to get all my stuff into a pickup truck and my little car for the trip to LA, why not get an engineer that knows how to pack stuff into a spacecraft flying to Pluto."

"Ahh so we nerds are useful beyond just our beer pong skills."

"Well that but there are a few other things you do ok with too." Carina said slightly seductively while smiling at the JPL engineer.

Butch tried the hide the blush. Carina had a talent for getting nerds to turn red.

"You sure you don't need our help?"

"No but thanks Chuck. You go take care of my best friend and former... roommate and Butch and I will be just fine." Carina said with her voice cracking just a little bit.

Sarah walked over to the redhead who had helped both shape and change her life and hugged her tightly for the last time as roommates. Both woman's cheeks were moist as the tears flowed unabated.

"I love you Carina."

"I love you too, Sarah."

"Remember, we are going to rock LA when we get there in a couple of weeks."

"Don't you know it, blondie."

Sarah pulled her in tight and whispered into Carina's ear. "Maybe you could bring along your hot scientist friend too."

"Oh, I was planning on it believe me." Carina whispered with grin.

"Chuck, call me when you get to Burbank. You and Sarah can come by Pasadena and I'll show you guys what they don't show the public on the JPL tours. You too Morgan."

"Definitely. We'd love that."

After Carina and Sarah broke their hug, Chuck walked over and put his arms around the redhead and said quietly. "Thank you so much Carina. I don't know how to repay you for all you've done for Sarah and I."

"Just take care of my best friend and remember what I said to you a few months ago. You hurt her and I'll be on the next plane to DC to kick your ass."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

"But seriously Chuck, you're a great guy and you've made Sarah really happy."

"Nowhere near as happy as she makes me."

"Looking at the way she looks at you and talks about you, I think you've got that wrong. Lucky for her she met the right nerd. Take care of her Chuck."

"I'll do my best."

"See you in LA?"

"Wouldn't miss it."

The friends all shook hands and gave hugs before Chuck, Morgan and Sarah headed down to the cars for the ride to Chuck and Morgan's apartment. The couple was about to begin their new lives and they were excited to be in it together.

**September 6, 2003**

**1310 33rd Street NW**

**Washington, DC**

"Devon, can you swing that arm over the railing and then we'll push it in the door from here."

"Ok, Chuck on three, one...two... three. Push!"

"Ok, we got it. Sarah grab the end and guide us around the door jam while I swing this end around."

"OK, Chuck just give me a second to move this box of books."

"Come on Sarah these sleep sofas are freaking heavy."

"Alright, alright, alright. Ok got it. Swing your end a little to the left... a little more... a little more... Ok right there. Devon straight in from there."

"Sarah, you still want this against this wall?"

"Yes, that's perfect. The TV can go on the opposite wall and your stereo underneath."

"Damn, I can't wait till we can get some surround sound speakers in here. This room is going to be awesome!"

Just then Ellie Bartowski came out from the second bedroom. Her hair bundled up under a painters hat. A streak of Navaho White down her left cheek. Her faded Buy More t-shirt didn't fair much better. "Chuck I've finished the last wall and I should be able to put the second coat on in about an hour."

"Good, we can close the door to let it dry overnight and it should be aired out enough when the futon and computer desk get delivered on monday."

"I thought you start work on monday?"

"No, Sarah starts on monday, I just have to go in and sign some paperwork for my security clearance."

"I thought you were working for the EPA? Why would you need security clearance?"

"Well I'm working on some sophisticated underwater robotic monitoring technology for deep sea oil and gas well inspections that has a connection to some military applications. Besides, it's Washington, everyone has some form of security clearance. You should have seen what Sarah had to sign." He said with a grin.

Sarah walked over and put her arms around Chuck's waist and gave him a kiss on cheek. "Ellie, it was nineteen pages long and I had to sign six copies. One for the State Department, one for the GAO, my copy and I have no idea where the other three went."

"Wow, well I guess even an entry level position at the State Department would have access to some sensitive material. So I can see why they would make you sign a bunch of secret stuff."

"They had lawyers to explain it all but I still read it all on my own. I didn't want to sign anything till I had read it completely."

"Good thinking."

"Chuck?"

"Yes, my beautiful Blonde goddess?"

"Once we get the rest of the boxes up from the truck can we set up the bed tonight?"

"What, tired of sleeping on the floor in a sleeping bag?"

"Well that and it is our first night in our first apartment together... I...I just think.." she said with a devilish grin that both Chuck and Ellie, who was still watching the couple, knew exactly what she really was talking about.

Chuck leaned in and kissed her tenderly. "Ok definitely the bed before the TV and my gaming systems. Got it."

"I don't think you'll be needing those set up just yet anyway. I've been all alone in DC for two weeks now while you and Morgan were back in LA getting ready to drive the truck cross country. I'm staking my claim on all of my boyfriend's free time for the foreseeable future." Sarah said in one of her many seductive voices. "I got used to snuggling up with my Chuck pillow while we were on our trip over the summer, I miss it and I want it back."

"Well I miss waking up with the most beautiful woman in the world next to me and I can't wait till tomorrow morning waking up in _our_ bed, in _our_ apartment, in _our_ new city."

Sarah stepped up on her toes and kissed Chuck tenderly. They were finally home in their new place, about to start their new jobs and begin the next phase of their lives together.

After breaking the kiss Sarah turned back to Ellie who was standing there with moist eyes watching her kid brother that she had practically raised, step out on his own with an amazing woman who loved him deeply in his life. She wiped her eyes nodded her appreciation to the new woman who would now take care of Chuck.

"Ellie, I'm sorry the guest room isn't ready, we really wanted you to stay with us."

"Sarah, it's ok. Devon and I have a great hotel room overlooking DuPont Circle. Besides we know what it's like moving into a new place. There are enough boxes, bags and all sorts of stuff under foot, you don't need us getting in the way."

"Well, next time you come to DC you're staying in the room you painted. It only seems fair."

"Thanks Sarah. We are looking forward to it. But remember, you two are coming to LA for Thanksgiving, no excuses." Sarah nodded with a warm smile and Ellie gave Sarah a signature Bartowski hug. The month Chuck and Sarah spent in Burbank before they left on their summer long, cross-country journey had bonded the two women together like sisters. Next to Carina, Ellie Bartowski had become Sarah's second best friend.

Chuck stood off to the side and looked over at Devon. The handsome Doctor had a wide smile on his face and he and Chuck gave each other a nod of appreciation. They both loved watching these two important women in their lives build a family bond that would last a lifetime.

"Hey guys, dinner has arrived!" The four friends attention was diverted to the arrival of Chuck's bearded best friend who had been sent on a mission to scope out the best Chinese and Sushi take out in Georgetown. Morgan had helped with bringing all the boxes up the stairs to the second floor apartment but the rather significant height difference made it awkward for him to help Chuck and Devon with the larger furniture. So he was given the task of getting dinner, a case of Sam Adams summer ale, and two bottles of Shiraz.

"So I see you completed you mission, buddy. I expect you have a recommendation for us?"

"Please Charles, who do you think you're talking to? Have I ever steered you wrong about affordable dining?"

"Well there was that time in tenth grade you had us go to, what was it called ... ahhhh... Phu Ket?"

"Hey, that wasn't my fault. I thought the name was funny. How was I supposed to know the place had been closed by the Health inspector."

"I think the real reason you wanted to go there was that hostess Hannah, or Anna... Wong I think."

"Ahhh, Anna Wu." Morgan sighed staring off into space for a moment. "What can I say I'm a sucker for an Asian woman in a naughty schoolgirl outfit."

"Aren't we all my friend, aren't we all." Sarah punched Chuck in the shoulder.

"Owww!"

"Is this something I should know about Chuck?"

"Nope, nope just tenth grade hormones that's all. But if you happen to have an old Catholic Schoolgirl uniform lying around..." Chuck said with a devilish smile before he leaned in and kissed Sarah before she could punch him again.

"You're lucky those kisses are like my kryptonite." She said weak kneed. But as she grinned, in the back of her mind she made a mental note that she would surprise him with when he least expected it.

The five friends ate off paper plates, drank wine from plastic cups and beer from the bottle all while they sat among the mounds of boxes, unassembled furniture, and suitcases. But for all of them, the chaos of Chuck and Sarah's new apartment felt like the finest restaurant in DC.

After about an hour the group all got back to work. Chuck and Devon assembled Chuck and Sarah's bed in the master bedroom, Ellie put the kitchen items in their appropriate cabinets, Morgan put together the TV, video game machines and Chuck's stereo while Sarah began to organize their clothes in the closets.

"Hey Sarah there isn't enough room for this old boombox with all of Chuck's DVD's and video games. I can bring it down to your storage space in the basement."

"Oh please be careful Morgan, I have a special place for that. I'll take it." Morgan handed Sarah the boombox and she held it like it was priceless. Her face slightly aghast at the idea of putting it in storage.

"Ok but Chuck has a great stereo system. I don't think you are going to need it."

Chuck and Devon had walked back into the living and heard the exchange. "Buddy, we most definitely need that" he said with a knowing look as he caught Sarah's eye as she headed into the bedroom with the special item.

Ellie walked over to Chuck and whispered. "What was that all about? It's just an old boombox. Sarah looked like she was holding the crown jewels."

"To her it is. Her father gave that to her when she was a little girl. She hasn't seen him in years. It's the only thing she has from him."

"Ahh, that's kind of sweet and sad at the same time. But why does it have a special place in your bedroom?"

"Well I know this sounds kind of cheesy but it's also what she heard my radio show on that first night when she called in and changed our lives forever. So it's kind of special to both of us." Chuck gave a soft smile to his sister.

"Then its very special to me too. It brought Sarah to our family." She leaned in and kissed her brother on the cheek.

Sarah walked back in and saw Ellie pull back and wipe a tear from her cheek. "You guys ok?"

"We're fine. Just a little brother-sister moment, that's all." Chuck then mouthed _'I love you' _and Sarah felt a soft loving smile grow upon her face. _'I love you too.' _She mouthed in return.

After a couple more hours of unpacking and organizing, an exhausted Morgan, Devon and Ellie said their goodbyes and headed back to the hotel. Morgan had an early flight out as he had to be back in LA for work on monday morning. Devon and Ellie's flight wasn't till monday. The two couples had planned to spend all day sunday sightseeing.

Coming back upstairs after saying their goodbyes, Chuck heard Sarah turn off the water in the shower. After a few minutes she walked out wrapped in a towel. "You're turn, Chuck." She said as she and headed into the bedroom.

"Ok, beautiful."

Chuck was sweaty, tired and happier than he had ever been in his life. He headed off to the shower to rinse off the labors of the day.

As he walked back out of the bathroom wrapped in his towel, Chuck stopped dead in his tracks. The apartment was a glow by about a half dozen candles spread around the room. Sitting on the rather large box that had held their pots and pans was a folded sheet that was serving as a linen table cloth. In the center of the 'table' was a large red candle surrounded by two plastic glasses filled with wine.

In front of the makeshift table, their spare bedroom comforter was spread out on the hardwood floor. Two throw pillows were laid on either side. But the most beautiful thing he had ever seen was the naked blond vision lying in the center.

"Wow, Sarah." He said, his heart full of love and a little bit of lust. Ok well maybe a lot of lust.

"Lose the towel and come join me." Her eyes equally joyous and her voice as sultry as he had ever heard it.

Chuck immediately did as she asked dropping the towel on top an empty box.

He walked over, lay down beside her and kissed her tenderly.

Breaking the kiss he sat up, reached over picking up the glasses of wine and handed one to Sarah. "Sweetheart, this is both unexpected and fantastic but I thought you wanted the bed set up first for a reason?"

"Oh, our bed is most definitely a part of the agenda for this evening but I thought we would begin 'breaking in' all the rooms in our new home in here." Her soft seductive voice sent chills down Chuck's spine. He truly was the luckiest man alive.

Chuck held out his glass "To our new home and our new life."

Sarah reached out and clinked her 'glass' with his and said. "To the amazing man I'm so lucky to share that new home and new life with."

"Welcome home, Sarah."

"Welcome home, Chuck."

The two lovers drank from their glasses and placed them back on the makeshift table their eyes never leaving the other. As they began to kiss and explore their bodies, the clutter that surrounded them faded away. The dim light of the candles danced along the ceiling and walls like a glorious ballet.

As their kisses grew deeper and their bodies became one, their hearts knew that they were home. This place, this moment, was where they were destined to be.

**April 18, 2008**

**Main House**

**Elizabeth Gamble Garden**

**Palo Alto. CA**

**6:55pm PDT**

"Carina, where is the blue garter! I need the blue garter!"

"Ok, ok, ok. I've got it right here, Sarah."

"Thanks. I think that's the last of it."

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to be a part of breaking tradition." Carina rolled her eyes but smiled at the vision of her best friend in front of her.

"Something old?" Carina listed off.

"Chuck's mom's charm bracelet." Sarah jiggled the family heirloom Chuck had given her on their first Christmas in DC.

"Something new?"

"My dress." Sarah's classic sleeveless dress with the lace bodice and simple lines looked stunning, and Sarah most definitely had the model figure that highlighted the elegant yet understated beauty of the dress. It was a dress that as soon as Sarah put it on she knew it was the one. As she had stood in front of the mirror with her maid of honor in the bridal shop she felt like a princess and she knew her prince would love her in it. She couldn't wait to see the expression on Chuck's face when he saw her walk down the aisle.

"Something borrowed?"

"Ellie's shoes." Sarah lifted up the flowing lace and showed the shoes Ellie had worn at her wedding, dyed to perfectly match her dress.

"And here is your something blue." Carina bent down and took the blue ceremonial garter, stretched it over Sarah's shoes and lifted into position a little too high for Sarah's comfort."

"Carina, a little lower please. The only nerd that's going to see that part of my thigh today is my husband." Sarah took a deep breath and smiled brightly. She couldn't wait to call Chuck her husband for real.

"Aww come on, Morgan and the rest of the guys are not going to be happy with this."

"Well tell them to get their own damn brides then." Sarah and her best friend laughed and gave each other a light hug, neither wanting to mess up their makeup.

Carina took a step back and took it all in. Seeing Sarah so incredibly happy and about to marry the man of her dreams warmed her heart like nothing she had ever experienced. She felt her eyes moisten as she gazed at the woman before her.

"Sarah, you look... perfect."

"Thanks, I feel perfect and I'm about to marry the perfect man."

"He is. Did you ever think you'd end up here, marrying a nerd?" They both chuckled.

"Well, I don't know if I ever thought about it, but thanks in great part to you and your meddling ways, I am." Sarah had always been so incredibly grateful for Carina pushing her to finally meet Chuck. It changed her life and she couldn't be happier about it.

"Well, I'm glad I could help."

"Carina, I know I've said this many times before but thank you. Thank you for being my best friend, for taking care of me, for bringing me to meet Chuck, for loving me but most of all for just being you, someone I could always count on to be in my corner."

"Well you've got someone else there now and I couldn't be happier to relinquish that role to Chuck."

"I love you Carina."

"I love you too, Sarah."

As the two best friends smiled at each other there was a soft knock on the door.

"Come in."

Sarah's bridesmaid Ellie Bartowski Woodcomb walked back into the bridal room with Sarah and Carina. "Sarah, this place is amazing? Is this really where Chuck took you on your first date?"

"Yes, it was so romantic. I had been falling for him ever since that first night I heard him on the radio but by the end of that evening I was in love with the romantic nerd. I know it was kind of a hassle for folks to come to Palo Alto but once we got engaged we knew the wedding had to be here. The grounds, the gazebo, everything here means something special to us and we are glad we could share this place with everyone."

"Well it's perfect. I didn't think my little brother had it in him but he stepped up big time that night."

"That he did and he's been doing it ever since."

The three women heard a another knock on the door and the woman from the Garden's staff peaked in and said, "There ready for you Sarah."

"Thank you. We'll be out in a sec."

"You nervous?" asked Carina.

"I'm about to marry the most amazing man in the world. So no, not one bit."

"Well I wish I could say the same for my baby brother." added Ellie with a chuckle. I think the breeze from a butterfly could knock him over right about now."

They all laughed when they heard a third knock on the door. "May I come in darlin?" the warm male voice said. Sarah nodded and Ellie opened the door.

Carina and Ellie stepped out into the hall to give them a moment and Jack Walker stepped into the room to take his daughter's arm. Chuck, with the help of some folks at the State Department he had met through Sarah had found Sarah's father and Chuck had flown him out as a surprise last Christmas. Though it was awkward and at times kind of hostile at first, he and Sarah began to rebuild their relationship that had been so painful for her for many years. It would take time but they were getting there.

"Sarah, you are so beautiful sweetheart."

"Thank you dad and thank you for being here. It means a lot to me."

"I know I haven't been the best father to you but I wouldn't have missed walking my baby girl down the aisle for anything." Sarah smiled and gave her father a light kiss on the cheek letting him know all was forgiven for today and she was just glad to have him here.

"So you ready to marry the schnook?"

"I've never been more ready for anything in my life."

**Gazebo**

**Elizabeth Gamble Garden**

**7:05pm PDT**

Chuck and his best man Morgan stood along with his groomsman, Devon in the Gazebo awaiting the arrival of his beloved bride to be. Chuck was nervous and he was tapping his foot rapidly on the wooden decking.

"Chuck relax, you're beautiful real life Vicki Vale is about to walk down that path and marry you man. You are the luckiest man alive."

"Don't I know it, but buddy saying that isn't helping my nerves."

"It's ok bro, I was nervous as hell when I married Ellie. We were on the beach and I kept getting sand in my shoes I was shaking so much. I must have had a pound or two in there before the ceremony even started. But as soon as I saw her walking towards me all of that melted away. It will for you too, I promise."

"Thanks Devon."

Suddenly the guests all heard the sounds of the song Aurora by Oregon. It had been an important song to their story and Chuck and Sarah had picked it for the processional. Chuck's attention was drawn to the path that had been covered with a white linen roll and had petals from many of the flowers already in bloom here at the Gardens strew upon it.

The first person they saw was a beaming Ellie. She slowly walked up the path between the seated guests and then up the stairs into the Gazebo. Following her was Sarah's maid of honor Carina. She stepped in a slow steady gate and found her place next to Ellie.

The invited guests then all stood up and looked back towards the beginning of the pathway. Standing there on the arm of her father with her bouquet of gardenias and yellow roses was a vision like few had ever seen. Not only was Sarah herself incredibly beautiful in that perfect wedding dress but the love that shown on her face and in her eyes was breathtaking. Something that rare and precious was a sight all who attended would remember.

Chuck turned and saw his about to be wife and his smile grew even larger. He had always known that Sarah was beautiful from the first moment he saw her but right now in this moment he had never seen her so lovely. This amazing woman who awed him on so many occasions simply took his breath away.

As Sarah' walked down the aisle with her father her eyes never drifted from his. The two lovers had always connected of a different level when they looked into each other's eyes and this was no exception. Their hearts spoke volumes to each other and both wanted to memorize the image of the other as they were about to become one.

Jack Walker brought his daughter up to the Gazebo and gave her arm to her soon to be husband before shaking his hand, nodding and heading to his seat. Jack had grown a real liking to his new son-in-law over these past few months and he knew that Chuck was the right 'schook' for his daughter.

As the ceremony began the celebrant came to the part where the couple got to say their vows. Chuck was asked to speak first.

"Dearest Sarah. Five years ago on this date and in this place we kissed for the first time. If my life had ended after that first kiss I would have died a happy man having found my heaven on earth. Thankfully I have lived to experience more and more of that heaven first hand and right now five years later as you become my wife and I your husband, I vow to prove to you every day the depth of my love for you. God has blessed me richly with you in my life and I make a solemn vow to honor the love we share for the rest of my life and beyond.

"Chuck, a little over five years ago a lonely college student sat in her bedroom doing her mundane chore of laundry. She decided to turn on some music to try and fill some of the emptiness in her room. But what happened next was truly magical. She heard a voice that made her feel happy and cared for even if she didn't know how or who that voice came from. It filled that empty room with warmth and a sense of serenity. Now the person whose voice she heard stands before her about to become her husband and she his wife. God has also blessed me richly and I vow to live our life to the fullest, love you with every part of my being, and show everyone that I am deserving of that blessing every day for the rest of my life."

"By the authority of the great state of California I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

Chuck leaned in and took his brand new wife in his arms and kissed her tenderly to the applause and cat calls of those in attendance.

"Ladies and Gentleman, the new Mr. and Mrs. Charles and Sarah Bartowski, have decided to have their first dance here in the Gazebo. Chuck and Sarah turned to look over at Butch Landers who was standing off to the side with his iPod connected to the Bose sound system they had been using for the processional music. He smiled at the newly married couple, winked at Carina and pressed play.

As the familiar sound of the Nelson Riddle Orchestra began to play, a sense of deja vu engulfed the couple. As Chuck took his new bride in his arms and danced like he had five years before, the lyrics sung by ole' blue eyes were even more perfect than he remembered them.

Their love affair that started with this song, in this place had come full circle. Chuck and Sarah were dancing once again to Frank Sinatra in this beautiful Gazebo and just as last time when the song was over they kissed each other passionately, only this time they were husband and wife.

**December 11, 2008**

**1310 33rd Street NW**

**Washington, DC**

**6:29 PM EST**

"Chuck, dinner should be ready in about fifteen minutes. Why don't you put the news on, I want to see if they have anything on about my new boss."

"Oh, has Hillary been by yet?"

"Not yet. I think she will wait till after she is officially confirmed for the big meet."

"Ok, do you need any help?"

"No I'm good but you can set the table if you want."

Chuck walked up behind his newlywed wife, wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her neck.

"Mhhhhhm," Sarah moaned. "That is not helping."

"Hey, speak for yourself. It's helping me quite a lot."

Sarah swatted him with the wooden spoon. "Hey that hurt!"

"Wimp. Do you want me to make it all better?" She said seductively.

"Well, when you put it like that" Sarah smiled and kissed the back of his hand where she had hit him.

"Actually I have few other places that need some attention, like here, _kiss_, here,_ kiss_, and most definitely here." Chuck pointed to his lips and his bride gladly obliged.

"Now go set the table Chuck." Chuck pouted but turned to take care of his role in tonight's dinner.

_"This is the NBC Nightly News, here is Brian Williams."_

_"Good Evening, in a stunning raid in New York today, financier Bernie Madoff and three others were arrested on fraud charges stemming from a ponzie scam that they were allegedly perpetrating on unsuspecting victims. Millions of dollars were invested in fraudulent accounts..._

**Crash!**

Sarah hearing the broken dish, turned and ran over to her husband who was standing there with his mouth wide open. "Chuck are you ok?... Chuck?"

All Chuck could do was point to the wide screen TV in the living room.

"Shit! Is that? Oh my god it is!" Sarah's eyes grew huge and she matched her husband's open mouthed shock.

"_Madoff, seen here along with his partner George Larkin, his accountant Bryce Larkin whose ex-wife Jill Roberts was recently dumped by New York Yankees third basemen Alex Rodriguez for allegedly having an affair with Red Sox captain Jason Varitek , and the reported architect of Madoff's ponzi scheme, Attorney Daniel Shaw were all arrested in their Manhattan apartments in a coordinated raid by the FBI and the SEC. All four were charged with various counts of securities fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering and perjury. If convicted on all counts the quartet could be sentenced to 150 years in federal prison. In other news today, President elect Obama nominated..."_

Chuck and Sarah turned to look at each other with matching stunned expressions on their faces. After a few moments neither could hide their growing smiles. They both leaned in and gave each other a passionate kiss that was only broken by the sound of the timer on the stove going off. As Sarah walked over and turned the alarm off, they both began to laugh. Neither said a word as it was all unnecessary. They understood each other's feelings perfectly.

After a few seconds they both went back to their tasks for tonight's meal. Sarah hadn't planned on this being a part of the menu for the evening but she stepped over to the wine rack that Ellie had given them as a bridal shower present. She selected a bottle of their favorite Merlot they kept for special occasions, grabbed two glasses and set them on the table.

Once dinner was served the young couple clinked their glasses in a silent toast. They smiled at each other and drank a very gratifying sip from their glasses and then leaned in to give each other a warm affectionate kiss.

"I love you, Chuck."

"I love you too, Sarah."

They clinked glasses once more and enjoyed the delicious dinner Sarah had prepared. The names Bryce Larkin and Jill Roberts were never mentioned again by either.

**January 27th, 2012**

**3229 R Street NW**

**Washington, DC**

**2:55 am EST**

Chuck Bartowski was seated in the rocking chair in the recently renovated nursery. When Sarah had found out she was pregnant they began looking for a home to buy. They loved the apartment they had lived in ever since they had moved to DC right after college but they had always planned that once their family was expanding they would hopefully be able to buy the home they had always dreamed of.

They loved the neighborhood they lived in and wanted to stay close by but Georgetown was very expensive. Both Chuck and Sarah because of their childhoods had learned how to save money and that trait had come in handy in their early years in DC. So after saving for almost eight years they had put together enough money for a good sized down payment.

One saturday morning while Sarah was in the shower Chuck had been reading the real estate listings online. After a few glances on some over priced "fixer uppers" he came upon a new listing that sounded perfect. It was only few blocks away and the listing said it was an estate sale. Chuck got up and walked into the bathroom and told Sarah about the listing. She said to call the broker and see if they could set up an appointment to see it later that morning.

They were the first potential buyers to see the place the broker told them. When they walked in the front door they knew they were home. Sarah loved it. The previous owner had been an elderly spinster and it looked like it hadn't been redecorated inside in forty years but the outside had been kept nice with well done landscaping and it looked like it had been recently painted. The first thing she wanted to change however was to paint the front door red. She had always envisioned her home as a white house with a red door.

So they put in an offer. It turns out the home had been in the family since the early nineteen hundreds and they wanted a nice young family to move in. When they met Chuck and Sarah and saw the attractive couple with Sarah just beginning to show they accepted their offer.

Those first few weeks the young couple, painted the front door, set up an office for both Chuck and Sarah, had a contractor renovate the upstairs bathroom, including a double shower they both really enjoyed and painted the nursery. Neither Chuck nor Sarah wanted to know the gender of their new bundle of love until the day he or she arrived in their lives. Their OB/GYN had offered to tell them but they both wanted to be surprised. So they had painted the bedroom white and bought the crib set in soft pastels with both pink and blue. Once they found out who their new family member was they could accent the room appropriately.

Chuck looked down as he held three month old Lisa Emma Bartowski quietly drinking the bottle Sarah had prepared earlier. Sarah was breast feeding but three nights a week she pumped enough to allow Chuck to handle the overnight feedings so she could sleep. He had told her that he was doing it for her but she knew it was just as important for him to have these private moments with his daughter.

It was three o'clock in the morning and even though it was Chuck's night to change and feed Lisa, Sarah was awake. On his nights when Chuck got up to feed her, he normally turned down the baby monitor so as not to disturb Sarah but tonight he had forgotten. The sound of Chuck talking to his daughter while he changed her woke Sarah up. She heard him pick her up and then knew he had settled down in the rocking chair while he gave her the bottle.

She thought about turning the monitor down so as not to intrude on their private time but the sound of Chuck's voice coming through made her smile with a wonderful feeling of remembrance. She lay there transfixed as he spoke quietly to their daughter.

_"So, my beautiful baby girl I'm going to tell you a different story tonight. This one is extra special to mommy and daddy._

_"A long long time ago a beautiful blonde haired, blue eyed princess was sitting in her castle doing her nightly chores. She may have been a princess but she always wanted to do her part to keep her place clean. Her red-headed hand maiden slept across the hall and she was the princesses' best friend._

_"Well this night her room was a bit warm and the princess decided to open the shutters and let in the cool evening air. After a few moments she heard the sound of someone playing a wooden flute quietly below her window just inside the entrance to the barn. After a few moments the music stopped and she heard a man talking to the live stock while they ate._

_"She had never heard this voice before but somehow it felt warm and like she had always known it. The sound made her smile._

_"After a few moments he went back to playing the flute and something inside the princess made her call out to him. He stopped playing when he heard the beautiful voice of a woman from the window above. When he heard how beautiful it was, it made his heart flutter."_

Sarah lay there captivated by both the sound of her husband's voice and the story she knew he was telling. The tears of love and joy began to flow freely from Sarah's eyes.

_"She asked him what he was playing and he told her it was a song he had learned as a child. He said that one of the mares was having trouble delivering her foal and that the music seemed to calm her. The man then asked the woman what song she wanted to hear and she told him Greensleeves. It had been a favorite of her father's._

_"He began to play it but suddenly he had to stop as the mare was about to deliver. He apologized and told the princess he would play it for her again the next night._

_This went on for a few nights but neither of them ever saw the other as they both felt it was improper with her a princess and him just a farmhand. They just quietly talked and he would play her beautiful music._

_"After a few days the princesses' handmaiden began to notice a change in the princess. She seemed happier and was a lot more fun to be around. The handmaiden asked the princess what was causing the sudden change but all the princess would do was smile._

_"The next night the handmaiden heard the princess quietly talking to someone as she walked past the princesses' door. She listened intently and heard the sound of the princess and the farmhand talking and him softly playing the flute. The joy she heard in the princesses' voice was the same as she had seen in her for the last few days. Somehow this voice outside her window was making the princess happy._

_"The handmaiden then decided to sneak down to the kitchen and head out to the barn to see where the man's voice was coming from. There she saw a tall curly headed man in scruffy clothes sitting on a hay bale by the door to the barn. She had heard that there was a new farmhand who came from a village to the south and this must be him. As she crept a little closer towards the door she saw his face lit by a small lantern hanging by one of the stalls. His smile was warm and he had a kindness in his eyes she had rarely seen. The happiness on his face was the same she had seen on the princess these past few days. What she saw on their faces and heard in their voices when they talked to each other was an unmistakably attraction._

Sarah heard Chuck pick Lisa up and place her on his shoulder. As he softly patted her back she let out a large burp. Sarah chuckled and the volume of the sound made her mommy proud. She then heard Chuck place Lisa back in the cradle of his arms. Sarah knew first hand how wonderful, safe and loved she must have felt when Chuck held her. It was the most wonderful place to be in both of these two women's lives.

_"Ok Lisa, where were we? Oh yes. Well the next day the handmaiden decided she was going to figure out a way for the princess and the farmhand to meet. If just hearing each others voices made them that happy then finally meeting each other would be even better. The handmaiden knew that the princess had never treated her any differently because she was just a handmaiden and she knew that when they saw the warmth of their smiles and love in each others eyes for the first time position and propriety wouldn't matter._

_"So the next day she went out to meet the young handsome farmhand. They talked for a bit and he mentioned that he and some of the other farm workers would be going to the town square that weekend for a festival. So the handmaiden hatched a plan to get the princess to come to the festival. She told her that there were some new clothes and fancy shoes from a distant city that would be on display in a small shop by the square. The handmaiden knew how much the princess loved new shoes._

_"Well when the day of the festival came the handmaiden and the princess went shopping. After a few hours of trying on shoes and fancy dresses they left the shop to get something to eat at the festival. The handmaiden had picked a particular cart because it was just around the corner from where the farmhand had told her he would be. While the princess was eating some fruit, the handmaiden saw the farmhand and went over to say hello. She turned in such a way that the farmhand's back was to the princess and when she saw the princess looking for her she waved for her to come over. _

_"When the princess saw the handmaiden talking to a tall curly haired man she noticed a wooden flute in his back pocket. Once she got over to her side the handmaiden introduced the princess to the farmhand. He politely bowed at the waist and said a cordial greeting. The princesses' mouth dropped open and she hurriedly tried to hide her surprise. As he reached out to take her hand and gently kiss the back of it, it sent chills down her spine. When he looked up he saw the most beautiful pools of blue he had ever seen. Their eyes locked and when she said her greeting in response he knew who she was as well._

_"After a few minutes or hours, neither knew which, where their eyes never left the others the farmhand asked the princess to meet him for dinner in the barn the next evening. She gladly accepted. _

_"All during this exchange the handmaiden simply watched with a beautiful smile on her face. She knew the beautiful princess and the handsome farmhand were perfect for each other._

Sarah's heart fluttered when she heard that part of their story. Carina had known from the very beginning that she and Chuck were meant for each other. She could never thank her enough for bringing her to the arts fair that day back in Palo Alto. Sarah sat up a little higher in the bed as she was anxiously waiting to hear about the first 'date' between the princess and the farmhand.

_"So little Lisa the next day came and the beautiful princess went down to the barn and found that the farmhand had set up a small table made out of a water trough turned upside down. Beside it he had set two bails of hay down and covered them with some clean horse blankets. On the table was a lantern, two cups, a bottle of wine and a basket of bread and fruit. When the princess saw what the farmhand had done her heart skipped a beat. It wasn't elegant by any means but it was the most beautiful and romantic scene she had ever dreamt of let alone saw first hand. _

_"After they finished their meal the farmhand asked if the princess wanted to take a walk in the gardens under the moonlight. She happily agreed and gladly took his arm when he held it out for her. Once they had walked for a short while they came to a bench at the top of a small hill. The full moon lit up the valley below almost as if it were daytime. As they stopped and sat on the bench the farmhand pulled out his flute and began to play a beautiful melody. Once he had finished he stood up and extended his hand to the princess asking her if she would dance with him. The princess stood up eagerly and stepped into the farmhand's strong arms. They held each other close as they danced in the moonlight. Once the imaginary song was over they stopped dancing but never let each other go. After a few more moments of enjoying each other's embrace the princess lifted her head to look into the warm brown eyes of the farmhand. Their smiles were both radiant and full of love. After a few seconds they both moved their lips closer until they were tenderly kissing. It felt so right and neither could tell which was brighter, the glorious full moon or the spark of light and love growing between them._

_"Once their kiss was over the farmhand suddenly got down on one knee. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring of gold that had been his grandmother's. He looked up into those pools of blue and no words were spoken, she simply kneeled down with him and kissed him her answer. And the princess and the farmhand lived happily ever after."_

Chuck saw that his beautiful daughter was now fast asleep in his arms and he quietly picked her up and placed her back in her crib. He kissed his finger tips lightly, placed them on his daughter's brunette curls and quietly closed her door.

In their bedroom Sarah placed her hand upon her mouth. Her tears were still flowing freely. When Chuck entered their bedroom he looked over and saw his wife awake and she obviously had been crying.

"What's wrong sweetheart?"

"Nothing's wrong." she said with her voice cracking noticeably.

"Then why are you awake and crying?" He said as he climbed into bed and reached out to hold his bride.

"It's just... I didn't mean to... I didn't mean to listen to your private time with Lisa, but when I heard your voice come through the baby monitor it brought me back to that first night when I heard you on the radio. Then when you told Lisa that amazing story, our story, I couldn't stop crying because I'm the luckiest girl in the world to have such an amazing man for my husband. I love you so much Chuck and it all just kind of hit me. I'm sorry for listening but I just couldn't help myself." Her voice cracking through the sobs of joy and love.

"Sarah, you have nothing to be sorry for. I love you too and I'm the lucky one. You are the most amazing woman in the world and I thank god every day that you agreed to be my wife. That story was beautiful because it was our story and it was real. I want Lisa to know how much love we feel for her and we feel for each other. Neither one of us had great luck with our parents but I'm going to make sure Lisa knows how much we love her each and every day."

"Me too Chuck."

Chuck held his princess tightly for a few moments before she leaned back and looked into his warm brown eyes so full of love. Chuck brushed away her tears with his thumb.

"Chuck?"

"Yea?"

"Kiss me."

**A/N2 Well that concludes my first completed multi-chapter story. I really can't thank you enough for all the kind words and support you, the readers, have given me with this story. Last chapter was my most reviewed chapter ever, over 30 reviews. For something that started out purely as therapy for me, I can't believe the response it has received. Thank you all so much. I humbly bow to your kindness. I hope you found this ending 'satisfying' and not 'artistic' ;). **

**This story was very personal to me and it will be sad to leave this universe behind but I ended it basically how I planned to do it from the beginning. They have come full circle with Sarah hearing Chuck's voice on a 'radio' once more. Overall I'm very pleased with how this story told itself, how it ended, and I can happily say goodbye to these amazing characters. I just wish I could have said the same for Fedak's ending. Their story is now complete but I may revisit this universe someday for a one-shot or two to fill in some of the time jumps. No promises but I want to leave that door open. Thanks to all of the reviewers who suggested things I was able to weave into the story. They really made it much better. By the way, the title for this chapter is from John Coltrane's masterpiece, A Love Supreme. That is and always will be for me the essence of Chuck and Sarah.  
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**Up next is the next chapter of LL&L and I have a couple of more story ideas I am working on to try and push myself as a writer. They will be a bit of a departure for me and I'm looking forward to the challenge.  
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**Thanks again for all the kind words you have given me throughout this journey.  
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